Zodiac Academy 8: Sorrow and Starlight

I travelled through stardust towards my manor house, Lavinia’s dark form twisting in a blur of shadow in my periphery. I materialised on the lawn, needing to check in on Vard and the rift he was watching over, but the moment my boots hit the grass, a raging fire came into view before me. My manor was burning with all the chaos of Phoenix fire, the red and blue flames devouring what was left of my precious abode. Liquid gold was spewing like lava from the ruins, every golden decoration in my house destroyed by the Vega whore.

An earth-shattering roar poured from my lungs, and I lost control entirely, my Dragon exploding from my flesh and shredding my clothes. I took off into the sky as Lavinia shrieked, turning into smoke beside me and travelling at my side. I wheeled over the house with urgency, the heat of the flames washing over me as rage consumed me. I was hunting for the Vega girl and her accomplices, desperate to capture them and kill them for this. And I would not rest until I saw them torn apart for this.

“No!” Lavinia cried as we flew over the altar of black stone down in the courtyard at the back of my abode, all of my prisoners vanished and the rift nowhere to be found. The ex-Councillors were now free to try and challenge my rule, just as they had the night I had captured them. But I had seen their treachery coming, had been prepared for it, awaited it.

They had shown up here at my manor just as Stella had opened the new rift, and exactly as Vard had predicted, they began protesting my latest decisions, arguing over the Nebular Inquisition Centres and my great plans for this kingdom. I was done. I didn’t need them biting at my ankles, threatening me with their power and banding together with their bullshit attempts to placate me. Lavinia had wanted them for her rift anyway, and though I was loathed to offer up any more power to my wife than necessary, it had been an obvious solution to the problem of the Councillors and their offspring.

All it had taken was a few threats to their smallest children to force them to bare themselves to my power. Antonia’s youngest pups had screamed so easily at the kiss of my knife to their throats, and all three of the Councillors had submitted then. Weak. Such abhorrent weakness to sacrifice themselves in place of some squalling brats who would likely never even rise to their full power regardless.

Lavinia and I had subdued them along with the Spares, binding them to the rift without so much as a blast of magic from anyone. And the rest of their useless families had served as a good incentive for them to keep feeding their powers into the rift, to continue struggling on through fatigue and the loss of hope. Yes, Vard had done well with his predictions for once. He had even managed to creep into the minds of the traitorous scum who had once sworn their allegiance to me and had found Melinda’s cunning little way to contact her oldest son. That had been the icing on the cake, luring the Heirs here with her crystal, hearing that they had also fallen prey to my plans and were immobilised upon the onyx altar.

But now, all of that, every piece had been shattered beyond my worst imaginings, that Vega bitch stealing in here in the dead of night and incinerating my beautiful manor. I didn’t know how she had managed such a thing while suffering the weight of her defeat on the battlefield, but there was no denying it as I circled my beautiful home, a growl of purest rage and horror echoing away across the scorched grounds. And where were any of my Nymphs? Where was Vard? Anyone at all who could have sent word of this attack?

I circled back over the house, landing on the singed lawn before what had once been my entrance hall, the ground shuddering beneath my weight before I shifted back into a man. Lavinia materialised before me, picking up my jade green robe from the ground, the clasp destroyed when I had shifted but the length of it intact. I snatched it from her hold, throwing it around my shoulders before marching up to the inferno that coiled towards the sky, consuming everything within it.

I reached towards it, trying to take hold of the flames to put them out, but they flared even hotter, making me jerk back my hand with a curse of fury.

I turned to my manor, the huge wooden doors groaning as they succumbed to the flames and fell from their hinges with a deafening boom which resounded through me to my core.

“No!” I bellowed in furious defiance as I ran forward, climbing over them and forging a passage inside.

“My King – it is not safe!” Lavinia yelled after me, but my mind was pinned on my most valuable treasures in my vault. I had to get to them and pull them from the depths of this cursed fire that was working to devour everything I had claimed for my own.

The heat of those flames fell over me from the stairs, the portrait of me in my Dragon form at the top of it melting beneath the intensity of the fire. Everything was burning, the fire hungrily destroying the stairs and the golden bannisters nothing but melted pools of metal spreading across the tiles, tainted and ravaged, their value lost.

I let out a cry of anguish as I ran deeper into my house, fire spewing from every doorway, and I only avoided it all by the luck of the stars and the strength of the air shield I’d erected around myself, though even that couldn’t fully douse the heat of that fire.

I moved fast through my house, hurrying downstairs with my mind set on my treasure as I wound through the halls.

I finally made it to my vault and stopped dead in my tracks, finding the carved-out shape of a Phoenix burned right through the centre of the door.

Horror splintered through me as I stared at the impossibility of that reality. That door was impenetrable, both the metal itself and the spells I had used to seal it in place. But as my heart raced in fierce denial of what I was seeing before me, I realised what she had done, how she had bypassed the magic by destroying the centre of the door and how very easily she had managed this act of horror.

I stumbled forward, blinking against the smoke as I looked into the cavernous space which should have been heaped high with all of my most valued treasure. A Dragon’s trove was his soul, the most important thing in all the world to him and mine was…gone.

She’d taken everything, the entirety of the treasure I housed in that safe, every heirloom and jewel, every single piece.

Smoke billowed across the room and something caught my eye on the far wall, my feet tripping over each other as I stumbled towards it, the glimmer it gave off making me salivate at the thought of her missing something, of there being something left, a single piece…

The shining gold which had lured me in so temptingly blazed brighter as I closed in on it and my blood itself began to boil as I took in the golden, shimmering words cast there on my wall and emblazoned with the fire of a Phoenix itself.

Long live the motherfucking Queens.

Anger exploded from me in a torrent, panic and horror colliding in the depths of my being as I read that taunt and felt the fullness of this blow against all I was and all I cared for.

I roared so loudly the ceiling shook, and suddenly it broke apart, a Dragon statue carved from jade crashing towards me. I cast air, throwing it away from me, turning and running from this place as the entire building began to fall, like it had been waiting for that exact moment, wanting me to read that message before it succumbed to the terrible power of my enemy.

I moved with speed, blasting debris out of my path and scrambling up the hidden stairs on my hands and knees, the stone burning my palms even through my shield. Never had I been forced to fear a flame before that moment, never had my own Element turned on me like this, betraying me.

I made it back to the burning entranceway, crawling across the floor, coughing and cursing as the hem of my cloak caught fire, my bare knees bleeding on the broken tiles.

I was trembling with rage and an emotion which I refused to admit came even close to fear as that fire burned hotter and hotter, my skin blistering, smoke clouding my vision, my air magic barely withstanding the force of it.

I clambered over the shattered front doors, my foot catching on something sharp and making me hiss as I fell, rolling across smouldering wood and the ruin of my once perfect manor house.

The second my back hit the singed grass, the walls crashed down behind me, bricks slamming into my air shield and pinging off of it as a plume of dust billowed into the sky.

I lay there on my back, panting and bleeding, burns blistering my exposed skin where the cloak had spilled open, unable to cover me, and just stared at the ruin which now lay where my home had once been. Where my treasure had once resided.

Horror paralysed me as I absorbed this impossible truth, my heart thundering in my chest and my hatred for the Vegas so potent that it ran through every piece of me like poison, promising them the worst of deaths once I had them in my grasp.

How could this have happened? I had left almost a hundred Nymphs guarding this place, along with that piece of shit who claimed he was my Royal Seer. How could his Sight have missed such a thing coming this way? How could he have failed so spectacularly?

“VARD!” I boomed at the top of my voice, the ground quaking beneath me from my ferocity.

To my right, a garden shed stood beneath an oak tree, the door swinging open and revealing a cowering, snivelling Vard within its shadowy depths.

“F-Forgive me, s-sire. The Vega girl was here.”

I launched myself to my feet and stormed towards him, fury tangling with my blood as my gaze locked on my prey and the need to release it consumed me.

Vard shrank away to try and escape, tripping over some plant pots and crashing down onto the floor in the back of the shed. Fire lit in my palms as I stepped into the small space, my huge form taking up the entire doorway as I glared down at this insolent, pathetic creature who was supposed to be the Royal Seer.

“And did you not see her coming?” I demanded.

“I-I-I-” he stammered.

“Did you, or did you not see her coming?!” I bellowed.

“I saw her as she landed, sire,” he blurted.

“You mean when she arrived?” I snapped, smoke spilling from my lips.

“Y-yes,” he whimpered.

I stepped deeper into the shed, the wooden floor groaning beneath my weight as Vard tried to scramble backwards away from me, knocking more plant pots off the shelves which bounced off of his head.

“All I know is that the rift is gone and so are every one of the prisoners I had here feeding it,” I hissed, hearing Lavinia wail somewhere behind me in response to that. “And my worthless Seer has been hiding in a garden shed for the stars only know how fucking long without summoning me here!”

While Vard babbled out some non-response, my mind ticked over the knowledge that Lavinia was weakened again, no rift in place to feed her. She would have been greatly strengthened by it, but she could no longer harness never-ending power now that it was closed. The rift being gone was not an entirely bad thing. In fact, I needed to find a way to regain control over her, to remain the more powerful one in our arrangement.

This certainly levelled the playing field a little. Though I had no Guardians now, and I was still not strong enough to control her, especially with this damn shadow hand attached to me.

I reached down, my fist locking around Vard’s throat as fire blazed in my palm. He screamed like a dying animal as I picked him fully off the floor and threw him with all my might through the back wall of the shed.

Vard bounced across the grass beyond the shed and I followed through the hole he’d created with his body, shattering more of the wood as I forced my shoulders through and stalked him like prey.

“Please, my King,” he begged, trying to get up, but I stamped down on his leg, hearing bone snap under the impact.

Lavinia appeared at my side, licking her lips and smiling at his pain. “More, my King. Make the one-eyed man pay.”

“No – please! Remember what I did for you – remember that I was the one who led you to the rebels’ hideout. My Seer gifts have proved themselves valuable beyond all bounds,” Vard panted.

I paused, considering those words. It was true. He had come to me the night of the battle, wailing about what he had perceived of their location, locking it down despite all the magic those vagrants had used to conceal themselves. It had surpassed all realm of my imagination in what I believed him capable of, and I could not deny it now. Though that did not excuse him from punishment.

I stamped down on the other leg, leaving that broken too, the heat of my anger like hellfire in my chest. I wanted his death, a long, drawn-out suffering to assuage my fury, but Vard had made himself too valuable. Not just with the odd vision he supplied that was incredibly advantageous to me, but with his other gifts too.

I was having no luck breaking Gabriel Nox’s mind, and he was impervious to Dark Coercion for reasons that I was sure had to do with those fucking Vegas. So I needed a Cyclops powerful enough to break into his head and pull out the visions he was keeping there. Vard was capable of it, but I would make him suffer before I healed his deplorable form and dragged him back to the palace.

“You have greatly displeased your king.” I gripped his shirt in my fist, hauling him halfway up towards me before slamming a fire coated fist against his jaw, bones snapping and pain singing in the air. I was driven on by the heat of the Phoenix flames at my back, picturing the Vegas in the place of Vard as I showed him no mercy.

Lavinia urged me on, her own anger sharp now that the rift was closed, and I let her play with him too when I was done, standing back to watch her torture him with the shadows. A dark hunger was falling over me, and my mind twisted onto Gwendalina Vega.

“Lavinia,” I said, prowling towards her, and she smiled at me in that wild way of hers.

“Yes, my King?”

“I have to get my hands on those Vegas. We must send out every member of our army today and hunt them down,” I commanded, my blood spiking with adrenaline at the thought of capturing them.

“Of course. But – oh! I can do better than that. I think I can summon the Vega I cursed. Now that she has fallen deep into the trap of the beast, I can control her almost entirely. Would that please you, Daddy?”

“You can summon her?” I gasped eagerly.

“Yes, I believe so,” she said excitedly.

“Then return to the palace and do so.” I cast a look back at the devastation which had once been my manor and forced myself to feel nothing but purest rage at what had been done to it. “There’s nothing more for us here.” A thrill scored through my veins at the vengeance I was going to seek so soon, at the thought of having a Vega at my mercy at last.

“I’ll speak with my Nymphs first and seek out any whispers in the shadows which may point us in the direction of the rebels.”

I almost bit back at her, wanting the Vega girl brought to the palace as a priority, but I had to think of the war. If there were leads to the rebels, then I needed them soon before the trails went cold. Besides, they had my treasure now, and I ached with the need to retrieve it more than I would ever admit.

“Very well,” I agreed. “Report back to me immediately if you discover anything of use.”

“Of course, Daddy.” She ran a hand down my bare chest, hunger in her dark eyes which roused some semblance of lust in me as I looked at her. She was beautiful, and willing, perhaps it was time I took my queen back to my bed and reminded her of the power of a Dragon. Perhaps with her weakened from the rift, I could do so fully again, asserting my dominance over her body in the way I should. I watched her go as she rushed away into the trees, darkness shrouding her as she went, and my gaze turned to the path leading to the border of my property and onto Stella’s land.

I ran my tongue across my teeth, glancing down at Vard as he whimpered, figuring he would live long enough for me to go and speak with her. Surely she had heard the commotion here? Was she not home?

I stepped over Vard, and his fingers brushed my ankle. “Please, sire,” he groaned, blood leaking from his mouth.

I jerked my leg out of his grip, my foot hitting him in the face before I continued heading along the path, fire coiling between my hands.

“Do not heal yourself of these wounds until I deign to do so or you shall sorely regret it,” I spat at him before striding away.

When I made it to the porch of Stella’s house, I found the door ajar and light spilling out over my feet. I pushed it open, raising my hands and drawing a tight air shield around me in case I might find some enemies within those walls. I would relish the chance to kill a few rats.

I moved down the hall and dropped my hands as I found Stella unconscious on the floor by the hatch in the wall which hid the way into the basement where she kept her dark magic equipment.

I crouched down, pushing her onto her back and frowning at the beauty of her. Perhaps I never should have brought the Shadow Princess into our lives; perhaps I should have allowed Stella to stay at my side during my takeover of the kingdom. She was certainly more amenable, easily controlled, and I had always enjoyed her body.

Now that Clara’s soul had left her, Lavinia was a cold, unfeeling thing who neither bowed to me nor pleasured me the way I liked. I may have wondered at being able to dominate her again now, but Stella had always known just how to do so without any need for me to work at it.

I brushed my fingers over Stella’s throat, waking her from the sleeping spell that was cast upon her, and I choked away her inhale as she woke.

“My King,” she croaked as I squeezed, my bicep bulging as I held back my strength.

How easily I could simply snap her neck; it was that kind of power I craved over the Fae around me. Utter dominion, complete control. And after all I had lost this day, how good it would feel to simply snuff out a life.

“What. Happened?” I hissed, smoke pluming from my lips and making her cough.

I only increased the pressure on her throat, my blood pounding with the need to do something to prove my might. Vard’s punishment had not been enough. I craved death.

“The rebels came,” she said in a strangled voice, clasping my hand to try and pull it off her, though she didn’t cast magic against me. She knew my moods, perhaps better than anyone left alive now, and she had found ways to temper them in the past. I wondered if she was still capable of that.

“Yes, I am aware,” I bit out. “They have destroyed my home, and all the prisoners are gone. The blame is falling heavily on Vard, but unfortunately, I need him alive for other purposes. You, however, I am questioning the worth of.”

“Lionel,” she rasped, her eyes wide and full of fear.

I revelled in that fear, drinking it in and enjoying the kick it gave to my ego. I was the King, the most powerful Fae in existence, and this was the way all Fae should look at me. It was time I got Lavinia back under control and ensured she started looking at me like this too.

“I’m sorry,” Stella said, reaching for my face and caressing my cheek. “Forgive me.”

It wasn’t her softness that stayed my hand, but something in me relented, and I decided not to kill her. She was a constant in my life, a reminder of all I had been through to gain power. Perhaps she had purpose yet.

My fingers loosened until she could breathe properly again, and I rose to my feet, finding myself eye to eye with a mirror on the wall. Ash had settled in my hair from the fire, and I had a rattled look about me that I didn’t much like. The burns marring my skin simply added insult to the injustice of this attack and I sneered at them as I took them in, healing them away with a flash of magic. I was feeling more and more out of control since Lavinia had forced me to impregnate her with that monstrous shadow creature, which had thankfully been destroyed before I’d had to endure much of its company. I knew at any moment, she could come to me again and command I give her another, and there was nothing I could do to stop her from forcing me to agree.

I swiped a palm over my face, marking it with soot and blood, realising my hand was shaking. I curled it into a fist, crushing the weakness from my bones. I will not falter.

Stella got to her feet beside me, taking hold of my arm and drawing my attention to her.

“You’re afraid,” she said, her voice softening. “Talk to me.”

“I am no such thing,” I barked, and she flinched as I spun towards her, expecting a strike. I was tempted, but I kept my hands from her.

Afraid? The Dragon King does not feel fear.

A spark of defiance flared in her eyes. “Remember when we used to talk of these days, of you sitting on the throne and the kingdom a place of glory?”

I remained still as she moved into my personal space, tiptoeing up to whisper in my ear. “It doesn’t look the way I hoped. I think you’ve lost your way.”

The emotion in her voice made me pause, and I pressed her back, darkness dripping through me.

“And what would you have it look like?” I asked. “I won my first battle and crushed the enemy thoroughly. I have captured the greatest Seer alive, and tonight I will execute a Vega.”

I had been taken aback by Vard’s vision of the truth which he had perceived after I’d commanded that the portraits of the Vegas be pulled from the walls. One in particular had caught my eye as the servants had taken it down, of Hail and Merissa coddling the infant boy they’d claimed as their ward. It had always seemed strange to me, but when Vard had seen the truth of who he was, my suspicions were finally justified.

It had all become so obvious. Merissa’s bastard-born son – a true blooded son and not some waif they’d taken pity on at all. I had thought him dead after my Nymphs had come to kill them all those years ago, but it seemed the Seer queen had made certain that all of her children escaped my wrath that night. That explained everything. Why his Sight was so great. Where his unwavering allegiance to those Vega brats had come from, and why he had been so certain of his devotion to them. But now he belonged to me.

“I always thought I’d be there to soak in your victories, Lion. But I guess I was just another steppingstone on your journey to domination,” she said coldly, retreating like she was done with me, but I knew she wasn’t. It was there plain to see in her eyes how much she wanted me, she was just bitter I had turned my back on her for so long. I could claim her again, and I would savour the challenge of it too.

“Is this meant to be some grand rejection of me?” I asked, my tone bland and proving I was unaffected by her charade. She had always been good at putting on a show for others, but for me, she crumbled. And she would do so again. I only had to push the right buttons.

Her eyes welled with tears and there it was; the truth behind the mask. “Maybe it is. Maybe I’m done waiting for you to fulfil all the promises you once made to me.”

I hounded towards her, and she backed up, raising her chin, and holding eye contact with me like she expected me to attack her. It seemed she didn’t mind risking being consumed by my flames, and that awoke a thrill in me.

“And what were those promises, Stella?”

“Don’t insult me by acting like you don’t remember,” she snarled. “You and I were so close once, you confided in me about everything. Now, I look at you and I’m not sure I ever knew you at all.”

“No…it isn’t that,” I said, moving closer until her back hit the wall and I stole all the air between us, taking up the entirety of her vision and keeping her there in my trap. My eyes shifted to green, reptilian slits and her throat bobbed as she fought to hold her nerve. “You always knew the depths of my power, Stella. You saw the darkness in me and my need to conquer and rise, but you cannot face it now that I am king, and I am able to unleash it all. You aren’t able to handle my deepest fury or my unimaginable strength, so now you are running from me.” I lifted a finger, stroking it along the length of her jaw before tucking a lock of black hair behind her ear. The way she parted her lips and let out a quiver of a breath revealed her want for me. “I am too much for you.”

“I’m the only one who could ever handle you,” she insisted as her will broke, her dark eyes flaring with desire. “But I deserved better. I waited for you year after year, I married a man I didn’t love because you commanded it, I have offered you counsel in dark magic, I have been there for you through everything, and now you offer me nothing.”

“Lavinia kills any woman I go near,” I said, a growl rumbling in my chest as I admitted that fucking vulnerability. I lowered my voice to a whisper as I went on, “She is no queen of mine. I will rid myself of her when the time is right.” I simply had to figure out how to do that first, and I had conquered greater challenges in the past.

Stella’s eyes widened, hope flashing in them. “And then?”

I knew what she wanted me to say, and it was so terribly easy to weave the lie for her. I did not want a queen at all. But right now, I did want warm flesh and the pretty moans of a Fae who was obsessed with me.

“Then, and only then, perhaps you and I can come to a better arrangement,” I said.

I waited for her to swallow the vague promise as easily as honey laced with poison, but hesitation crossed her features then she shook her head.

“Liar,” she breathed, and anger sparked hot beneath my flesh. “You’re lying now, just like you lied when you swore I’d be there when you came to rule.”

She took my hand, placing it against her pounding heart as if I should be able to read something from it.

I snatched my hand back, rearing forward and throwing her against the wall.

“You are here,” I barked, done with this game. “And you are mine.”

I lifted her up, spreading her legs wide for me and she gasped, leaning in to kiss me as her will collapsed, crumbling for me as easily as always. My head turned so she met the corner of my mouth, and I shoved her skirt up her thighs, the warmth of her skin a delight after knowing only the icy touch of Lavinia’s for so long.

“Oh, Lion, have you missed me?” she moaned, arching her back and clinging to my neck in encouragement.

“I missed this.” I dropped my robe, ripping her panties off and driving myself into her hot wetness, bracing myself against the wall as she cried out. I fucked her without mercy, the power of my thrusts driving us hard into the wall until plaster was showering down around us.

Finally, I had a release for this ferocious energy tearing through my body, and it was her. A true ally who knew her place beneath her king. She was a reminder of my power, and I fed on it like flames devouring gasoline. Yes, I was the Dragon King, the greatest Fae in the land.

I was already primed to explode, and I came with a roar as I pinned her there with the full weight of my body, my palms burning holes in her wallpaper as my fire magic spilled out of me.

As the relief of the outlet settled over me, my mind immediately turned to more important things.

I jerked out of her as I thought of my treasure and what had been lost to me this day, the need to protect all of my remaining assets demanding I act fast.

I picked up my robe, donning it as Stella panted against the wall, holding herself up as she sagged there, ravaged and no doubt satisfied beyond all bounds.

“You will bring your things to the palace and stay there from now on,” I commanded.

“I am not safe in the company of Lavinia. If she learns of our relationship, she will-”

“Relationship?” I scoffed. “You are privileged to service your king.” I strode to the door and her next words fell over me, shaky and dipped in far more emotion than I cared to deal with.

“You loved me once,” she whimpered.

I glanced back at her with a sneer at that word, that disgustingly weak notion. “Your emotions will be your downfall, Stella. Find a way to harness them or I will retract my offer. If you come to the palace, you will do so with your eyes wide open to what our arrangement will be. The only relationships you and I have are of business and fucking. Each play by the same rules, and it is emotion that ruins both. You, of course, will continue to covet me, love me even – if you believe in such things – but understand that I have never and will never return such…sentiments.”

I strode out the door, her sob following me, and some ghost of a memory reminded me of a time when we had spent our days at Zodiac Academy together, plotting and cavorting, and even laughing at times. She had been an interesting distraction once, but my plans had outgrown her. Maybe there had been a time when I had felt something in my heart for her, but I had learned a long time ago that there was no reward in loving someone.

I had felt such affections for my father once when I was young and naïve. I’d tried to gain his favour, but he had always focused his efforts into Radcliff, his eldest son, the Heir. And eventually, I had learned that the only way to be noticed in this life and taken seriously, was to prove my power. When Radcliff had died, Father had seen me then. He had been forced to acknowledge my superiority once I was finally given the opportunity to prove myself. I did not blame him for his initial preference, in fact, I had seen merit in it myself when I had sired my own sons. Darius had always shown more prowess than Xavier, and so he was where my resources had been placed. It was pragmatic and did away with foolish concepts like coddling your spawn. This life was harsh, and you didn’t thrive in it without stepping on some spines. It was not a place for runts.

My parenting methods may have seemed cruel to weaker-minded Fae, but my father had been a wise man who had proved how much more could be achieved in life when power was placed above all else. I had taken his skills and combined them with the charisma I had learned from Radcliff. I had watched him closely, observed how Fae would do anything for him because of his charm, and I knew if I could mimic that behaviour, then I would be unstoppable.

My brother may have been strong, but I was smart. I cut down enemies in their sleep, took revenge without anyone knowing of my involvement. And over time, my strength grew to match that of my brother’s, and now outshone it entirely. Between all of my skills, I was a master of power in every manner that mattered. How my brother and father would envy me now as they watched from the stars, this man with all the reins of fate in his grip.

Stella was my final reminder of those times when I had been scaling the ladder of my ascension. She was a leftover from my past and now she could not even begin to comprehend the magnificent plans I had for Solaria. Fucking her again had relieved me of the small pull I’d felt towards her tonight. From now on, I would keep her in my court as a consultant of dark magic, and whenever I wanted my cock sucked or a warm body to sink into, I could access her with ease. Stella would have her slice of power that way, and she had best be damn grateful for it too. I would just have to make sure Lavinia never learned of our trysts.

I returned to my manor grounds and peeled Vard’s shattered, twitching body off the grass, healing him before shifting into my Dragon form and clutching him in my talons. I took off into the sky, vengeance rushing through me as I flew above the burning remains of my abode.

I would answer Roxanya Vega’s attack with an attack of my own. Her sister’s blood would paint me red by the time I was done, and I would ensure her death was broadcast live to the world.

First, I would head to the city of Celestia and hold a meeting with the Dragon Guild to demand they relinquish much of their treasure to me – although the priceless items I had lost could never be truly replaced. I would hunt Roxanya to the ends of the earth to retrieve my treasure.

At least I had something to look forward to in the meantime, because when I returned to The Palace of Souls tonight, a Vega would be waiting for me, and it would be time for me to destroy one of the most powerful creatures in this world and half the threat against me.

This was my kingdom, and I would assert my dominance in blood again and again until no one dared defy me. Once upon a time, I had twisted Hail Vega into a creature of violence who everyone in Solaria feared, and I had seen the effectiveness of that. It was time I truly donned his crown and took his title upon myself. For it had always been me behind his greatness anyway. I was the Dragon Lord, Lionel Acrux, and I was the true Savage King.