The dragon's harem

“The torment of a sinner god?” Gamond gasped, “Wait, that forest of bones we landed on first, wasn’t that the corpse of a rotting god that is suffering there?”

“Hell is ancient, it had existed before the first soul was ever born. Certainly, long before Asmodeus took the throne, even she didn’t know everything about the sinners chained here. Hell itself torments them, and we devils are just their jailers.” Haru looked around through everyone’s eyes, listened through their ears, and her body swayed a bit.

“This darkness never behaved like this before. It was just a dark place that’s hard to traverse, not something that could mystically trap people in. Something, someone among us had woken the dreadful god chained here.” She looked around and soon her eyes landed on Matilda, “Among us all, you’ve got a dark spark in your soul.”

Matilda gasped, her eyes opening wide and her hair standing up.

The ancient god tormented in this hell, or whatever it was, had its eyes on Matilda’s soul. She who carries the void blood, darkness that is deeper than its own.

They didn’t know why, they didn’t know how, but the seer was certain that the shadows danced when Matilda walked, eying her tenebrous soul. She could sense the creatures of darkness moving around them, keeping their eyes directed at the black tiger girl with hungry growls.

Gamond growled and stood, “Then it’s decided, we’re lost here, not because we can’t get out. It’s because those things aren’t allowing us to get out.” White scales started to appear on her pale skin as cold mist rushed out of her mouth as she spoke.

Lunara stood as well, the muscles of her legs rolling like steel wires. She stretched a bit, lifting one of her legs up until her chin touched her face, she then put it down with a crack. “Gamond and I will clear a path, she’ll then carry you and fly away.”

Lunara walked to everyone and touched them, marking each one with her demonic magic so they won’t get killed by her demonic attacks. Everyone looked at her with terrified and confused faces. “You two are going to fight, whatever is there?”

“Why won’t we? We’ll die anyway, so we’ll at least take them down with us.” Lunara approached Gamond and stood in front of her. For some reason, everyone felt a cold chill run down their spines, and it wasn’t because of Gamond’s cold.

Lunara sighed, “As much as I hate it. It is the only way.” She scratched the back of her head, “If you managed to get out, I’ll need you to be able to pull me out as well. But I’m sure the darkness will get in the way, so this is the only option, give me your hand.”

Gamond did just that, and Lunara took her hand and kissed it, creating a black tattoo in the form of a slender rabbit holding a sword, dancing beneath the crescent moon.

Gamond looked at her hand with a surprised face, “Demon servant seal? You know that giving me this means I’ll control everything you do and think.”

Lunara sighed, “Right now, I’m lower than a slave to you. But that seal is a single-use only. Once you get out, use it to pull me out. Not even the gods would be able to overwrite that seal.”

Gamond looked at her with a grin and nodded, “You can trust me with.”

It was then that Haru gasped, “Wait… we’ve seen demons break the shackles of hell before.”

Lunara looked at her with a frown, “Your leaders should know about the seal. That’s how we protected the most important demons from getting snared by hell.” She scowled, “Of course, lesser demons surrendering their lives to me is one thing, but me surrendering my life to someone else is another thing.”

“It’s called a demonic mark by the humanoids.” Sara sighed, “You’ll mostly see it with cultists who serve powerful demons. While devils offer contracts, demons want servants. As long as a mortal surrenders their everything to the demon and bears their seal, they can call on some of that demon’s power.”

Gamond cracked her neck, “If everyone is ready, then pull your weapons and stand still. It’ll all happen in a split second, so be ready to move.” She looked at them and smiled, “Also, I’m not that good at controlling my power when fighting powerful dead gods. You’ll leave the skin of your arses on my back, stuck in ice so be ready for some pain.”

Everyone nodded. The devils were used to pain, even Sara didn’t seem bothered. But Matilda rubbed her butt, “I’ll stand.” She sighed, knowing that she would spend at least several days crying in pain later.

But… but, just maybe, if she managed to bring Mira’s father back, Arad might look at her a bit better. Unlike most of his wives, she isn’t that powerful or talented, but here in hell, she can prove herself.

“What about Mira’s father?” She asked, and Lunara shook her head. “Let’s hope he dies by Gamond’s ice or my slashes, and let us hope that he’ll resurrect soon, and hopefully in a safer place.”

Sara looked at her with a faint smile. “That’s a lot of hope for a demon.”

“And you’re too generous for a devil.” Lunara’s wide grin covered her face as she took a step forward, slowly lifting her hands.

Gamond cracked her neck and shoulders, “Here we go,” and in a cold gust of wind, her body expanded and exploded into a storm of snow and ice. From the blinding hair, a massive draconic figure rose. Her claws crushed through the darkness like massive pillars, and her great wings flapped, sending a wave of ice magic to consume the shadows.

[Elemental Expansion: Winter Storm]

In the blink of an eye, the darkness was pushed several hundred meters away from the dragon. As they expected, this darkness wasn’t natural but magical, an extension of the power of the being living here, a kind of expansion. When Gamond’s expansion overlapped with it, she could now assert dominance over an area.

Everyone was ready to climb on Gamond’s back, and Lunara walked through the ice, ready to start spilling blood to cover their retreat. But something horrifying happened. Tentacles made of countless skinless humans flew out of the darkness and wrapped around Gamond’s wings, and ripped them off.