Prologue
It was in an era long before our recorded history that the magic coins were formed. Many theories exist as to their origin and purpose, but none know for sure. Some speculate that they are a gift from some divine being to reward the deserving, and others believe they are a fragment left over from the creation of the universe. Either way is possible, for the coins contain the ability divine power to transform and create, which is a trait of either theory. The coins themselves reveal no hints as to their origin, for they can change their own form in a fashion that appears almost sentient. They care not for race or creed, nor do they care for factions in a war. In the end the coins are all the same. For those who possess one of these coins and rub it's head one wish will be granted, and it can only be one from the deepest recesses of the pure heart. Once the coin has been triggered it will release a surge of mana from its own reserves, thereby granting the wish. Then the coin will mysteriously disappear to find a new master. Typically these wishes are small desires such as the wish to have enough coins to buy a meal, but on rare occasions a person comes along and makes a wish that changes the world. Michael Collins is such a man.
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*CLICK
When the truth is found
To be lies
And all the joy
Within you dies
Don't you want somebody to love
Don't you need somebody to love
Wouldn't you love somebody to love
You better find somebody to love, lo... *SLAM
In a dark room early one morning, a figure slammed his hand on his alarm clock to silence the music playing from the tinny speakers. Music, rather than an annoying beep beep beep, because nobody likes that blaring and grating sound.
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...
"Good morning Michael Collins ... ya ugly mug. Now drop your cock and grab your socks, 'cuz it's time to go to class." Michael said.
Silence followed for several minutes before the figure rolled off his futon and got up to start his day, not with a spring in his step but a grumble. His joints creaked as he moved slowly to the bathroom to relieve himself and splash his face. The man winced when he turned on the lights, with the garish 5000k bulbs blinding him temporarily. As he looked in the mirror he couldn't help talking to himself.
"Hello handsome! You're looking... awful today. Yeah I know. Go to the gym." Michael muttered sleepily.
The figure in the mirror was not a handsome man. In fact many people called him disgusting. He was a monstrously tall figure with buzzed brown hair and a round face, and a double chin. Yes he was a fat man, and thus the disgusting part. Leastways that would be what the world would say automatically without thinking. Humanity was cruel like that. Cruel and stupid. That's how he felt about it, after being on the receiving end of more than one insult. Other than that he was young looking despite being in his early twenties, which often resulted in him being mistaken for a teenager. His brown hair had two receding lines which was the only hint to his age, and the highly intelligent gleam in his eye. He wore a pair of glasses which were a flashback straight to the 80's, almost looking like aviators but not quite.
Michael had a set routine he did every morning. First was the bathroom, and then a pot of coffee was set to boiling. Then he would flop back in bed and drool a while before finally getting up again and showering. Because of his large body Michael would go to extra lengths to ensure he didn't end up fitting into the smelly fat man stereotype, so his shower would take longer than normal. Then he would sip his coffee at his computer and slowly wake up, before finally at long last getting ready to go to his college classes. His clothes were the same every time. A pair of BDU's held up by suspenders under a tshirt, with boots or PF Flyers for shoes and an old green rucksack to complete the image. Sometimes the colors would change but he would wear that same self inflicted uniform every day without fail. It was the same clothes he wore as he stepped out of his little apartment so he could walk to the campus. As soon as he stepped outside the smell of cigarette smoke wafted up to his second story patio.
"Good morning!" Michael exclaimed cheerfully.
"Hhmp." The neighbor said gruffly.
Every morning Michael would greet his neighbor even if he didn't know her name, and every morning the old lady would blow him off like he was a fly. Not that he would let that get to him in any way.
"Have a nice day!" Michael said, smiling nicely.
He walked away without waiting for a reply he knew would never come.
And so it was in this fashion that Michael would begin his days. After leaving his apartment he would stroll into the campus building and greet the staff. Since he showed up early every morning he could work on projects and have pleasant chats with some of the guys. Never the girls however, much to his unending disappointment. After spending the whole morning and afternoon at class he would go home and flop down in his only chair with a sigh and a cold fizzy drink. After staring at the wall in boredom he forced himself to do his homework, in which he had no doubt that it would be graded 100% just like every other one. His highly intelligent eyes weren't exactly for show. As he worked he turned his computer on and logged into his favorite site, where he could casually chat with the few true friends he had, and scan the techie news sites for anything of interest. Minutes turned into hours as he alternated between his homework and computer, casually posting anything of interest on the chat. One such thing he posted read as such.
"Hey guys check this out! New from the land of the rising tentacle monster is... the SNES classic. I wonder if Nintendo will shaft their customers again like they did with the NES classic?" Michael typed.
A couple LOLs and '/me facepalms' came back in response to the post, and Michael smiled as he went back to his work. Several minutes later he looked up again to see a new post from a good friend, Alistair Grey which read...
"Tentacle monster eh? Here you go." Alistair messaged.
Just below the message was a URL link.
wiki/Tentacle
Michael clicked on it without reading it or even thinking twice. After all he had known the people on that chat for years and trusted them. In fact they were such good friends that they would often buy each other games on Steam just to be nice. None of them were the type to put a malicious link in the chat, or anything that could get a virus. So by clicking that link Michael was introduced to the world of the Monster Girl Encyclopedia.
Michael skimmed the page quickly and before long figured out what his friend had done.
"Ah a joke. That's Alistair for ya. Hmm." Michael said.
The page was in the form of an encyclopedia, talking about a fictional creature that had the body of a woman and a tentacle creature combined. In the text was a biography about how the creature was supposed to act, much of which was lewd in nature. After lingering a few moments longer he clicked the tab away and typed in the chat.
"Nice artwork but wtf. Thanks though." Michael typed nonchalantly.
Alistair replied instantly.
"IKR! The art is epic and the stories are so much fun to read!" Alistair messaged.
Michael chuckled and went back to his work once more. That particular friend was well known for being shameless in his antics. In fact he had gone so far as to proclaim himself a proud furry and constantly post barely dressed fox and cat girl pictures in the chat. So the fact he knew about such a random site like the MGE wiki was no surprise at all. Michael had read countless posts just like that one, and never really paid any of them much mind.
"Shameless lolicon." Michael muttered.
He scribbled his pencil and solved some homework problems, and the entire thing faded from his mind.
Things changed after that day. It was several days later when Michael was on his computer again looking for something to do when he remembered the MGE. Curiosity got the better of him and he found himself scrolling back through chat history so he could find that link again. When he did he found himself staring at the colorful artwork once more, even as embarrassing as it was. Before long he found himself reading other biographies besides the tentacle. Some caught his eye immediately, such as the Centaur and the Lamia of Greek mythology. His self justification to read those were the relationship to history which he was a big fan of reading. But he quickly read all those and continued on, and couldn't believe how many pages there were. Countless others were clicked on and read over the following weeks. Weresheep. Unicorn. Mermaid. Slime. It was as if a strange sort of morbid curiosity had descended on him, and he thought it hilarious how outrageous the biographies could get. Mindflayer. Shoggoth. Fairy. Manticore. What had originally been an off hand comment had turned into a full blown fascination. His interest didn't start out in a lewd manner, more like a sort of bored entertainment. The art really was good, and the biographies compelling, so he kept reading without telling a single soul.
Through it all Michael remained silent about his reading choices. Even if it was a close friend who had introduced him to the MGE, he didn't want to admit it. But while Michael was busy reading and studying his schoolwork, his friend had been hard at work in the chat introducing everyone else to the MGE as well. It came to be a big surprise when Michael first noticed that everyone else was reading and enjoying the encyclopedia too. It all came to a head when Michael logged in one day right in the middle of a public chat on the subject, and Alistair noticed him immediately.
"Hey, what's your favorite monster girl?" Alistair messaged.
"Huh? My favorite?" Michael typed.
"Yeah, you've been reading the MGE haven't you? What one would you pick if you could?" Alistair messaged.
"Shit." Michael said aloud.
He logged off as fast as he could, and rubbed his eyes in fatigue. He wasn't ready to admit to reading the 'pedia quite yet.
It was several days before he logged into the chat again. Not that he was avoiding it but because he simply got swamped in homework. When Michael finally did log in, it was because of loneliness mostly, and curiosity about what people were talking about. Scrolling back through the chat history revealed that his friends blamed his disappearance on one of his common internet failures and not from chickening out, much to his relief. Nobody said anything out of the ordinary and life went back to normal. For a while.
"Hey, fur boy's been looking for you. Wants to know what your favorite monster is. I told him mine was the Centaur." Another friend messaged.
"FOR REAL?!" Michael typed.
"Sure why not. Centaurs are from Greek mythology and I just love mythological creatures! Besides... she's hawt!" Another friend messaged.
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...
"You guys are all perverts." A third friend messaged.
Suddenly the chat exploded in a flurry of beeping messages.
"NO KINKSHAMING!" Everyone messaged repeatedly.
Michael sat back in his seat, and watched in amazement as the third friend was chewed apart by a surge of angry messages.
"Why can't we go back to talking sci fi and games, like the new Star Wars movie?" The third friend messaged.
Right around then Alistair made his presence known. He had been logged in the whole time but was just set to appear offline.
"Star Wars has monster girls in it too!" Alistair messaged.
"That's it, I give up. You all talk about your perverted freak girls and I'll go talk to my girlfriend. Laters." The third friend messaged.
"Well that was rude." Michael muttered.
"That guy, what a prude. It's so... tiring." Alistair messaged.
Michael chuckled and took a drink of a soda.
"Heh yeah. Didn't think about it but there is some crazy shit in Star Wars. So anyways, what's been going on?" Michael messaged.
"Not much. Been playing some 7 Days To Die and a couple others have been getting into Black Desert Online. You?" Alistair messaged.
"Craptons of homework. Man you should have seen the shit I had to do in my programming logic class. One friggen credit, and I do more work than two other four credit classes combined! ARRRGH!" Michael messaged.
"Well hey, you should pop in and play some games. Take a load off and all that rot. You game?" Alistair messaged.
"Sure. I'll be in voice." Michael messaged.
Michael reached over and grabbed his microphone.
*creeeeeeeaaaaaak
The microphone was attached to an old scissor mic boom, which creaked in protest of being moved. He toggled the switch on the top of the mic and then clicked the voice chat channel which already had his friend inside.
"Hey HEY HEYYYY maple man!" Michael said cheerfully.
"Hello Mike. So, ready to fight off some zombie hordes?" Alistair asked.
Michael smiled in recognition of his friend's voice. Alistair lived in Canada but was from England, so he had that epic accent the British were known for.
"Sure, I'm firing up the server now." Michael said.
Michael was tapping away at his old vintage clicky keyboard, pulling up the server in 7 Days to Die. Before long the sounds of the two friends playing filled the otherwise silent apartment.
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...
As the two played, they chatted some about a bunch of casual things. Michael was happily building up some base defenses while Alistair looted some buildings across the street.
"Did you ever decide on a favorite monster girl?" Alistair asked.
...
"Mike?" Alistair said.
"Yeah, sorry I was distracted." Michael blurted.
That was a lie of course, at that point Michael had spent hours pouring over the biographies of the monster girls. Something he wasn't about to admit.
"And? Which one was your favorite?" Alistair asked.
"My favorite... monster girl?" Michael asked, evasively.
"Yes. Your favorite monster girl." Alistair said, annoyed.
...
"Uhh...hhh that was for a game right?" Michael blurted.
A bad lie, but that's all he could come up with.
"Yes..." Alistair hissed.
...
"Ok Alex, give me Lamia for 200." Michael joked.
"Noice! A certain someone we both know picked lamia too, if you get what I mean." Alistair said, chuckling.
"Oh no. That's a bad sign." Michael joked.
Alistair was hinting at another equally perverse friend who they often chatted with online.
"Well there's the basic lamia, and then you have all the subspecies. He picked an Echidna specifically." Alistair said.
After that Alistair went on a long explanation about the different subspecies of lamia, where they come from, how they act, and why. Michael just let him go and didn't do much more than add a small sound byte every once in a while.
~Several Hours Later~
Michael bade his friend farewell and signed off for the night. It was late and he needed to get to bed. So after shutting things down and preparing for bed, Michael flopped into his futon and stared at the ceiling for a while.
...
He reached over and grabbed his laptop, and from memory pulled up the MGE wiki. Before long he was reading an entry called The Succubus Notebook. He quietly read away as the night went on, and dawn slowly approached.
~Many Days Later...~
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*Click
When the truth is found
To be lies
And all the joy
Within you dies
Don't you want somebody to love
Don't you need somebody to love
Wouldn't you love somebody to love
You better find somebody to love, love
When the garden flowers
Baby, are dead, yes
And your mind, your mind
Is so full of red
Don't you want somebody to love
Don't you need somebody to lov... *SLAM
When Michael shut off his alarm clock so hard that it skidded off his makeshift nightstand and crashed to the floor. He groaned and rolled out of bed, and started his usual morning routine just like always. Bathroom then coffee then shower, all while shuffling tiredly.
"Damnit... stayed up too late reading manga again." Michael yawned.
Ever since Michael had been first introduced to the Monster Girl Encyclopedia a year before, he had become a full blown fanboy. Anything even remotely relating to monster girls caught his interest. After reading the entire MGE wiki front to back and top to bottom, he searched for new material. Much to his amazement he found a whole niche market dedicated to the concept of monster girls. Everything from Monster Musume to Monster Girl Quest was thoroughly watched or played, sometimes repeatedly. Even things just somewhat monster girl based were hunted down and watched with glee such as To Love Ru, Sekirei, and Gate: The JSDF Fought Here. Michael even formed a habit of listening to Ken Ashcorp's "Touch Fluffy Tail" on YouTube every morning before leaving for school. Some might speculate that the tradition of posting daily comments on the TFT video was started by Michael himself. He had fallen head over heels in love with monster girls, especially how they acted as a culture as opposed to humans. Much like every other person who had ever been sucked into a fantasy world like that, it was an escape more than anything. The real world and real women were far less forgiving, especially for someone as poor and unattractive as Michael. A happy charismic personality will only get someone so far in such a vain world. Oh he enjoyed reading the MGE, but it only made him think about the flaws the world had. And each time he remembered, he was hit with a tinge of depression. Case in point...
Since Michael was so good with his studies, he often hired out to serve as a tutor for some of the other students with more money than brains. He met many people, and the vast majority of the men were pleased with his work. The women usually would ask for another person after the first session, with no explanation given. Not that Michael needed one, because most of the girls couldn't stand being near the "smelly fat guy" even though many of them smelled worse than he did. Or at least that was what his own doubts told him. He tried to be polite to everyone just like his smoking downstairs neighbor, but very rarely would he blow up. One day in his tutoring session with a cute little redhead, who was complaining about her boyfriend more than actually studying. Mostly piddly stuff about arguments, and a rant about how inconsiderate he was. But the very end of her raving struck Michael to the core.
"... and then I found out to top it all off that he cheated on me! He was keeping another girl I don't even know on the sidelines in case it fell through for me, like some sort of fucking safety net!" The redhead shrieked.
"My god. What a sick thing to do. I could never do that!" Michael exclaimed.
"Everyone's doing it. It's the new thing." The redhead sobbed.
Michael shook his head. He had heard rumors about how it was common place to have a backup boyfriend or girlfriend, and the idea sickened him. He couldn't comprehend doing that to someone he really cared about, and he felt a great deal of pity for that poor girl. Thinking that maybe she needed a friend or someone to talk to, he spoke up.
"Well... if you ever want someone to talk to then you know where to find me. Would you like my email just in case?" Michael offered.
The redhead looked up in surprise, and gaped her mouth a little. Michael didn't know whether that was a yes or a no so he kept talking.
"Or if you want I could give you my phone number. Call me anytime, I'm always available." Michael said, smiling.
The redhead's expression turned to pure rage, curled lip and all.
"Are you seriously coming onto me just after I got done saying all that? You're just as much of a sicko pig as he is!" The redhead bellowed.
"Hey I'm just trying to be nice, there's no need to call me that!" Michael growled.
"Yeah well fuck you. I'm a woman and I can say anything I want, and I think you are just another perverted man who wants to use me!" The redhead hissed.
"Alright that's enough. Maybe the problem isn't your boyfriend at all, but maybe it's you and your attitude. I wouldn't date you if you asked." Michael growled quietly.
Right around then Michael started packing up his things to leave, but the redhead was unfazed.
"A bloated fatso like you would be honored to date me. Why don't you go home and oink oink your way through another trough of slop, piggy!" The redhead taunted.
Michael stood up and loomed over the seated redhead, and slung his backpack over his shoulder. A dark expression filled his eyes.
"How would you like to have a size 14 boot shoved up your snatch? I bet it would fit like a hotdog down a hallway." Michael growled.
He tossed the woman's money lightly on the table and walked away, her shrieking voice cussing him out as he left. It took a lot to set Michael off, but when he got angry then he had exactly ZERO problem saying what was on his mind and backing it up if need be.
By the time Michael had gotten home later that day his foul mood had faded and was replaced by depression. He flopped into his worn out chair and stared at the ceiling for a while.
"What a bitch. Monster girls are way better." Michael muttered.
As he sat, his mind was rolling around and thinking about that situation. He couldn't help but note that it was a repeat of similar situations that had happened to him hundreds of times before. In his mind, women were vain and bitchy.
"I like women. But even if I were to find one to date me, I would have to deal with the same crap that red head was dealing with. I have no money, no good looks, and I live in a messed up world full of cheaters. Maybe being alone would be better." Michael murmured.
As he said that, he felt a twisting feeling in his heart. He didn't want to be alone. That was the last thing he wanted, and the thought of being alone forever filled him with dread. He felt like he was backed up into a corner.
The day went on and Michael did all his homework, cleaned his apartment, and got ready for bed. One of the things he liked to do before sleeping was to reward himself with a little monster girl material, but there was nothing new. So he reread some older stuff, including some on the MGE wiki site. His began reading the page about one of the main published books. Specifically he was reading Monster Girl Encyclopedia World Guide I: Fallen Maidens. There was a specific reason why he was reading that particular novel, and that reason was a memory of a specific paragraph:
Cheating often happens with human couples, but once the monsters get husbands, they never cheat. It is said that they're in half disbelief when they hear about how some human women think nothing of infidelity. The love and lust they have for their husbands isn't just born from emotion; it's deeply engraved in their instinct. No matter how far apart they are from their husband, they can't think about wanting any other man, and even if another man tries to tempt them, they display no interest. On top of that, even if a man were to forcibly rape them, their body will have already changed to belong to their husband alone, so they can't experience physical pleasure from any other man. Their body and heart will never yearn for a man other than their husband, and they never want the energy of someone other than their husband, so it's impossible for their love and desire for their husband to waver.
Michael sighed and turned off his computer. The MGE had only reminded him of earlier and renewed his depression. Grabbing a cheap beer from the fridge, Michael flopped into bed and slowly sipped his green bottle of swill.
"Too bad they aren't real. Monster girls really are better." Michael thought.
As he reached over to turn off the light he noticed a trinket he kept on his nightstand. A penny dated 1993, made the same year he was. Not just any penny, but a special penny which he kept as a good luck charm. Michael had kept that penny for nearly fifteen years ever since a strange old lady had given it to him while he was getting food at an all you can eat buffet. She had said it was magic and would grant him a wish someday. Ever since then he had made many wishes, none of which came true in the slightest. Picking up the penny, Michael closely scrutinized it in every detail. The markings and condition were factory new, and there wasn't a tiny bit of tarnish to be found on it anywhere. All in all it was a perfect example of an uncirculated 1993 penny. He chuckled and said a wish, much like he had many times before.
"I wish I had a girl just like out of Fallen Maidens. One who would love me and allow me to love her without any concern for appearance or money." Michael whispered.
Nothing happened. Michael looked around the room just in case, but didn't really expect to see anything.
"Oh well. A fella can dream." Michael muttered, disappointed.
Just before putting the penny back on the nightstand, he flicked away a piece of lint which had become lodged on Abe Lincoln's forehead. Then he put it down gently and turned the light off so he could go to sleep.
~Meanwhile... in a far away dimension~
A dark figure made its way down a narrow street, winding through a city far away. The figure was walking hurriedly, making a clacking sound as her heels hit the ground. Those few people who were outside at such an early hour were quick to step aside and bow their heads, for the woman who was in such a hurry was a woman of great importance. Or at least that is how the people perceived her. She held no concern or care for how the people saw her, and only acted in a dignified way out of habit and pride. Her footsteps carried her to a great mansion in the center of the city, and into a great hallway where she had an important meeting. The older guards knew well who she was and let her in without a word, nodding respectfully towards the figure. Many of them she knew personally from another time and place, having trained and fought side by side with them in the name of justice and god. To those people she nodded back as she hurried by.
"I must hurry. My master has summoned me." The woman thought.
The guards watched her go by, and some of the newer ones muttered to their veteran companions a question.
"Who is that woman? She wears the armor of a hero!" Guard A asked.
"That's Searraigh Fontaine, and she earned the right to wear that armor if she so wishes. If you were to pick three of the best swordsmen in this land... she would be one of them." Guard B replied.
In the light of the hallway torches, the woman named Searraigh could be seen wearing armor and carrying a sword at her hip. Her raven black hair bounced and bobbed every which way as she scanned her surroundings, habits formed from long grueling years of training. She was a beautiful woman with fair skin and exotic features resembling someone of eastern European decent with a touch of Mongolian. Before long that proud figure found her way into the great hall of the mansion, where he rapidly walked towards a looming figure sat upon a great throne at the very head of the room. Once she got within range he fell to her knee and bowed her head.
"By your command... lady Druella." Searraigh prostrated.
Indeed before her on the throne was the sinister figure of Lady Druella. Fourth Princess of the Demon Realm and daughter to the Maoyu herself. Also of late known as the Mistress of Lescatie, mostly because of her actions in conquering the very town she was residing in. Widely feared as a succubus of great power and cunning. Much like Searraigh was also a succubus, and a member of Druella's personal guard. Searraigh's curled horns glinted the ruddy candlelight, and her wings and tail were tucked tightly against her body. When she heard Druella take a breath to speak, her pointy ears perked in anticipation.
"I am disappointed in you." Druella said sternly.
"*GASP... My lady!" Searraigh yelped.
"I have told you not to bow before me many times, and I find your disobedience tiresome. Now rise, and stand before me so you may hear my words." Druella commanded.
Searraigh straightened until she was on her feet and stood ready to leap at the lady's commands.
"I have a quest for you that is of the utmost importance." Druella said.
"Yes my lady. I am ready." Searraigh said firmly.
Druella raised her hand and cut Searraigh off before she could continue.
"The place you would go is far and filled with peril. You would have to travel alone and we could not send help, but if you are successful it may mean an end to the war." Druella informed.
"The order would be defeated?" Searraigh asked in disbelief.
"The chief god would be defeated." Druella corrected.
Searraigh reeled in shock at the thought, as if she had been struck. Druella smiled devilishly and continued.
"Think of it. All humans everywhere under the control and protection of monsters. You could be responsible for filling every corner of the world with the moans of lovers in heat. Isn't it glorious?" Druella smiled wickedly.
"That sounds... wonderful. All the women would be taught their true nature just as I was." Searraigh grinned.
"Yes. Even more importantly, the place you would go has a great number of human males..." Druella tried to say.
"I'LL DO IT!" Searraigh shouted.
Druella smiled and let out a pleased giggle.
"I thought you would. Now come forth and open your ears." Druella instructed.
Searraigh walked forward and up the steps until she was on the platform that Druella was sitting. She held out a rolled dispatch which was sealed with the stamp of the Maoyu herself. Searraigh took it and observed the eye symbol stamped in the wax holding it all together. The eye signifying the monster lord's seal.
"Where is it I must go? The order capital?" Searraigh asked.
"Nay. The place we will send you is much farther away. We intend to send you to another dimension." Druella said.
"Another dimension? Which? Wonderland, or maybe Pandemonium?" Searraigh asked.
"Neither. We are going to send you to a dimension just recently discovered. One in which we have no influence yet." Druella explained.
"What is the name of this dimension?" Searraigh asked, curious.
Druella shook her head side to side, white hair splaying everywhere.
"We know very little about it. What little we do know was what my mother divined and scried, and what was contained in the message." Druella continued explaining.
"To send a message between unlinked dimensions must have taken a mighty sorcerer." Searraigh straightened.
"Yes, which is how we discovered said dimension in the first place. Other than that we have determined it is a land much like this one with a great number of humans contained within." Druella added.
"How many humans?" Searraigh asked.
"It is not known, but if what my mother saw is any indication they number in quantity equaling the stars." Druella answered.
"What was contained within the message?" Searraigh asked.
"No words were contained. It only held a single complex human emotion, which was a foreign one until a helpful interpreter and an incubus deciphered it. In short, the message was condensed loneliness coupled with a plea for help." Druella explained.
Searraigh fell silent as she pondered the words she had just heard.
"How lonely must someone be to send a plea for help across the dimensional rift and straight to the Maoyu?" Searraigh thought.
"Who is this lonely person who sent the message?" Searraigh asked.
"His name is Michael Collins. He is in his mid twenties and lives alone as far as we can divine. Open the dispatch and you will find a fairth with his likeness, and the signed orders from my mother." Druella said.
Searraigh's fingernail slid across the wax and sliced it open, allowing her to unroll it slowly. Sure enough it contained two documents, one which was the orders from the Maoyu written in black ink and the other was a magically created portrait of Michael Collins. Searraigh stared at the picture for several long minutes, absorbing every line and crease in his face. The squinting of the eyes and the lack of a smile didn't escape her attuned succubus gaze. They were the characteristics of an unhappy person, something she could relate to on many levels.
"Your quest is very simple. Go to this world and learn as much as you can about the people and environment there. Find a way to open a gateway between our worlds if at all possible, and also spread demonic energy to as many people as possible. Finally you must find this man, Michael Collins, and protect him from the chief god's army. Undoubtedly they will strike at him in retribution for his blasphemy." Druella said formally.
"Understood... but..." Searraigh stammered.
"Speak." Druella commanded.
"I want this man for my own." Searraigh said firmly.
Druella smiled once more, even wider than she had before.
"You need not ask permission. It has been many months since the fall of Lescatie and yet you still remain unmarried, which is why I have summoned you." Druella said, laughing.
"Wilmarina is married to El, so she wouldn't want to go." Searraigh reasoned.
"How observant. Yes indeed that is why you were called. But let not that imply you are a lesser warrior, for your skills easily match Wilmarina's." Druella reassured.
"We shared many of the same trainers even if we weren't in the same knight regiments. She was the daughter of a noble so she got the attention. Not that it matters, for I am unconcerned with being relatively unknown." Searraigh said dismissively.
"Very good. I am proud of you for letting go of such useless and vain human concepts. Prepare yourself for long travel and expect you will not be able to return. You will serve to be a fine representative of the succubus race and all monsters everywhere." Druella said proudly.
"I anticipated you would wish to send me on a quest and prepared my belongings already. I am ready to go." Searraigh said.
Druella waved her hand and signaled her readiness.
It came to some great surprise when Searraigh found out that she would be visiting the Maoyu's castle in the deep demon realm known as Royal Makai before going to the new dimension. Both her and Druella stepped through a magic circle and transported straight there, and entered a new grand chamber filled with people. In addition to countless powerful looking women with white hair, all undoubtedly lilim just like Druella, there were many sorcerers and witches who all turned to look at the newcomers.
"Greetings my beloved sisters. Someone please tell mother that the volunteer is here." Druella said.
"I am already aware my sweet child." A voice said.
All eyes turned and beheld the speaker. It was the monster lord. Maoyu. The ruler of all monsters everywhere, and the most powerful woman in the world. The succubus who defeated the ancient demon lord and changed all monsters everywhere in her image. The one who radiated so much power that a man could be brought to his knees just by being looked at, and enough to make all liminals around her thrum with excitement and lust. All the non lilim spectators fell to their knees as soon as they noticed her, including Searraigh. The hall fell silent, other than the singular sound of high heels clicking slowly across the black marble floor. Before long Searraigh heard them stop just in front of her, but her head was firmly bowed down and she couldn't see.
"Rise." Maoyu commanded.
Searraigh's legs were quaking as she forced herself to rise under the overwhelming crushing presence of the succubus in front of her. Even when she managed to get up on her unsteady legs she still kept her head bowed in respect.
"So you have volunteered to go on this quest? I wish to ensure you were not forced." Maoyu asked.
"Yes Maoyu." Searraigh answered quietly.
"Do not call me Maoyu! My name is Lilith!" Lilith commanded.
In that moment her voice had changed, and was filled with black power. Searraigh recoiled back at the sheer pressure of it, even if it only lasted a microsecond.
"Yes... Lilith." Searraigh corrected herself.
"Much better." Lilith said sweetly.
Lilith's tone had softened, and instead of being oppressive had suddenly become uplifting and energizing.
"We will be using a great deal of demonic energy to transport you, so you will not be able to come back. Nor will we be able to send help without making ourselves vulnerable to attacks from the chief god. Do you understand?" Lilith asked.
"Perfectly." Searraigh said.
"Good. Before you go I will convey my blessing upon you." Lilith reassured.
Lilith's hand reached out and lightly touched Searraigh's still bowed head. As soon as contact was made a surge of demonic energy flooded her body.
"This blessing will allow you to survive longer on the other side, and create either a demon realm or magical wards for protection. Now stand in the circle and prepare yourself." Lilith said.
Searraigh was overwhelmed with the feeling of power running through her body. The energy Lilith had given her was tiny in the grand scheme of things, but to her it felt like enough to move a mountain. When the crowd of magicians moved aside a great magic circle could be seen on the ground. It was massive and utterly intricate in its design, and must have taken every person in the room to draw it so quickly. She was guided to the center and told where to stand, and she stood there as stiff as a board as she waited for what would happen next. As it so happened the next thing was Druella handing her a sheathed sword.
"Take this. It's the same blade Wilmarina used to capture Lescatie. May it serve you well in the coming times." Druella said.
Searraigh partially drew the sword and looked at it. It was a demon realm silver sword of deep tar black, with veins of red running through it. Carved in several spots were magical runes of demonic origin, intended to increase the power of the blade's natural magical effects. She buckled it to her belt and nodded a thank you towards Druella. With one last look around in awe at the majestic castle she was in, she signaled her readiness. Before long the circle was activated and she was sent on her way. Lilith and her daughters looked at the temporary portal that had been created, and for some it was the first time they had looked to the other side. In their minds they wondered what kind of world they had just discovered before the image was replaced with an empty crater in the black marble floor.