Chapter 1: It's Lonely at the Top
Demon World
Time is a meaningless construct for those that live eternally, the Demon Queen Yui Sakamaki determined.
Long has been the days she kept track of which day, month, or year it has been, especially here in the demon world.
Long has it been since she celebrated her day of birthday, since that no longer mattered to her.
Most things didn't matter to her, since things come and go. Even her emotions were fleeting, with only her sisters to keep from her falling into apathy.
She scoffed, remembering her dear sisters still maintained a shadow of their former humanity, even though their blood was pure.
Truthfully, she was jealous of them. Unlike them, she was never truly human because of the demon heart she had since birth. A sick experiment ochreastred by the former Demon King, Karl Heinz.
Her…'true' father she supposed, a production to save the demon world.
Ground Zero for the eradication of Endezeit, a virus that would've destroyed the demon world. But with the perfect blend of demon and human blood, a cure was found and a new breed of demons were born.
Of course, Endezeit still managed to kill the old guard, including her late husband and his brothers.
That...was the beginning of her rise as Demon Queen and her dwindling attachment to almost anything.
Her even her twin sons and daughter felt distant from her, where she was more concerned about their administration of their sectors of the human world than their well being as her children.
Not that they noticed or perhaps care to notice. She became quite the actress.
She took a swig of the blood wine in her goblet, realizing she had become no better than Cordelia, the former owner of her heart.
That….was a bitter taste in her mouth, but perhaps it couldn't be helped.
Speaking of the human world, that long had been a misnomer. Humans nearly wiped themselves centuries ago with their pointless wars and had to be saved by her clan. Now they were essentially cattle and sheep, paying a blood tax to demon ruled governments.
She smiled a little, recalling a work of fiction that had a similar plotline. It was cruelly hilarious, how fiction became reality.
To be fair, there was some self-sovereignty with the human populace. They still had rights and could make laws that pertained to them. But even the most democratic societies had to submit to the rule of demons. A rule that was hierarchical.
As the Demon Queen, she sat alone at the top. But since she rarely stepped foot in the human world, most of the decisions were determined by the Council.
Her sisters, Mai, Anne, Sara, Kaede, and Ichiyo, lead the Council as the "Five Dames of Sanguine". Underneath them were their children, who were sector administrators that the human leaders reported to quadannually. From there, enforcement was handled in a military-style, with the strongest demons being the general. At the lowest level, half-bloods would be the tax collectors.
Everything ran like a well-oiled machine, even when inevitable conflict arose.
Yui had to admire the intervals of rebellion, it kept things interesting and allowed for humans to pretend they weren't prey. Of course, some of the better rebellions also had gruntled half-bloods and dhampirs in the ranks, such as the one taking place now.
Chime!
"You may enter." Yui called out from her throne room. In walked her one of newly minted butlers, the leader of the rebellion from 50 years ago.
"Pardon my interruption, but the Council sends news of the latest development of the current revolt. The rebellion's leader has been captured" the butler stated.
"So soon?" Yui frowned, "Well, usher them in Bradshaw."
"As you wish" Bradshaw bowed. He opened the door to reveal a young woman with a fierce gaze. Yui dismissed Bradshaw, who then proceeded to lock the door behind him. With a snap of her fingers, the bindings fell to the floor.
"Well, well" Yui rubbed her fingers, "To think the rebellion would be over so soon, such a shame. And here I thought this one would lead to a world war."
The woman said nothing, only stood there in defiance. Yui lips curled at this, maybe there was more to this capture than it appears.
"Where are my manners?" Yui laughed, "My name is Yui Sakamaki, Demon Queen and the Goddess of the human world. And you are?"
"Ragyo Komori" the woman said, "I'm surprised the so-called Goddess of Earth is tangible and thus killable."
Yui gave the most wicked laugh, legitimately surprised by the audacity of the woman.
"Did you let yourself get captured? In an attempt to assassinate me?" Yui smirked.
"Tsk" Ragyo clicked at the discovery of her plan. Yui just chortled before summoning a silver dagger and tossing it at the woman. It fell right in front of Ragyo's feet.
"Go on, give it your best shot" Yui cooed, "Drive that blade right into my heart."
Ragyo eyed her suspiciously, not believing the woman would allow such a thing.
"What are you waiting for?" Yui said as she raised her hands in a surrendering gesture.
With wicked focus, Ragyo used all her speed and strength to wedge the blade right into the vampire's heart. After a brief moment, she gasped as she saw Yui casually spinning the blade on her finger, her blouse stained in blood but no visible wound to be seen.
"What?" Ragyo muttered.
"While that strike would've killed a lower vampire, it has no effect on me" Yui singsong, "You can't kill a deity that easily."
"So you can be killed, then" Ragyo summarized.
"Of course" Yui confirmed, "But only one worthy of taking my mantle can kill me, as I did to the previous Demon King."
Ragyo said nothing, knowing that her effort was futile for now.
"Alright, let's get to brass taxes" Yui said while magically cleaning and fixing her blouse, "Given you let yourself get captured, I take it your comrades expect your return."
"Our Rebellion will go on as long as they believe I am alive and will succeed my mission" Ragyo rebuked, "One way or another, humans will regain control of their fate."
"Ah, so it's one of those revolts" Yui noted, "Well, I will make sure you will be in constant contact with them."
"Huh?" Ragyo blinked, "You want a revolution?"
"Dear, I've been the ruler of two worlds for centuries" Yui shook her head, "It would be boring if there were no wars against my dominion."
Ragyo licked her lips at the woman's words.
"I can see your resilience in your eyes" Yui commented, "I wonder how long it will take for you to break?"
"Break…never" Ragyo spat. Once again, Yui roared a wicked laughter.
"You're not the first to have such bravado" Yui said, "But every previous leader has eventually submitted to me, becoming one of my generals or servants. What makes you different?"
"My mission" Ragyo defiantly retorted, "I will kill you, even if it means sacrificing everything."
"Is that so?" Yui smiled, "Alright, I will make a bet with you. If you can resist my manipulations to bend you before your transformation is complete, I will let you kill me, for real."
Ragyo gaped at her comment, taken by a few words.
"Transformation?" Ragyo blinked.
"This is the demon world" Yui explained, "No human can live here, most of them die because they can't handle the ambient demonic magic penetrating every fiber of their being. Only the strongest will survive and become a demon themselves, albeit the process is extremely painful and mentally exhausting"
"I survived worse." Ragyo mumbled.
"We will see about that" Yui said, "I wonder how long before you beg and join us? I'm sure you will be the best pet to date. In any case, I'm sure you're beat, so I will have Bradshaw escort you to your new living quarters." Yui snapped her fingers, summoning Bradshaw back inside. Bradshaw bowed before motioning Ragyo to follow him. Once they were gone, Yui sat back on her chair with a neutral expression.
"Komori….where have I heard that name before?" Yui thought to herself.
In time, Yui would remember the importance of that surname.
A/N: Total overhaul of my previous story called "Lost Humanity", with Yui facing feelings she hadn't faced in centuries.