Chapter 4: Princess Amentia of Downland
The crashing of the water calmed and tossed Erasiel and his party onto the shore, Stella was out cold; everyone else was exhausted and drenched. Erasiel simply hauled Stella out of the water stoically over his shoulder, followed by the Pixies who were the least exhausted of them all. "Cold, too cold" Shilly chattered, she was soaking wet and the water had been cold.
"Here gather around" Erasiel instructed and they gathered around him, Erasiel pulled out wood from his pack and put it into a stone circle, before igniting it with a minor fireball. "I have no knowledge of where we are, for now we are tired, soaked, shaken, and in some cases hurt badly, the only for it is stop and collect ourselves, the fire will keep us warm, we have camping supplies and I packed a few emergency tents in my bag; bottomless well spells, so they won't run out of space" Erasiel noted, then he studied Stella, the rock had torn a gash in her head, nothing life-threatening but still a serious injury, also he felt her arms and noticed she had broken both legs. "Crap, you've been hurt bad Stella" Erasiel stated to a still unconscious Stella before whispering in her left ear "Ekvai nagvir" casting a sleeping spell on her. "She will be out for a while, I put her in a sleeping spell to deafen her pain also to keep her from waking don't want her to yell and attract unwanted attention, also I need to do something else" Erasiel stated, then muttered a charm under his breath, it repaired Stella's outfit and removed any water in it afterwards he bandaged the gash.
"Now what do we do?" Vera asked.
"Simple we rest" Musa replied.
"Not before I look you all over for injuries" Erasiel noted.
"What about you?" Nimeria asked.
"And more importantly what about our clothes?!" Pusilitia shouted angry.
"Alright, I can fix those, as for me well I've survived worse than a raging river, plus the Relix armor really takes a lot out of the hits" Erasiel responded, he then used his spells to mend their tattered clothes, restoring them to pristine condition as well as drying them. "Now for us to get some sleep, no time to set up a tent, everyone take a sleeping bag" Erasiel instructed summoning enough for everyone. "Now put them in a circle around each other to conserve body heat" Erasiel instructed, Everyone tired did so with their last ounce of energy, only after having wrapped themselves in did the pass out, Erasiel was awake still. Erasiel picked up Stella and laid down, unzipping a sleeping bag and pulling her on top of him, to keep her warm. "Good night sweet Princess" Erasiel remarked kissing Stella on the forehead before wrapping his arms around her in a loving embrace before falling asleep.
The following morning was met by a rude awakening, a rude kick was given to Erasiel's sleeping bag alongside everyone else's, around them stood imposing warriors; with pale yellow skin they were clad in armored coats of scales and carried large bardiches, their hands only had three digits: a thumb, pointer finger and a warped palm that was a fusion of the other three fingers. "What the Hell!" Erasiel remarked, having been thrown out of his sleeping bag but still holding an unconscious Stella.
"You are trespassers, you trespassed on the Land of the Kingdom of Downland" one of the warriors stated.
"Great Trogs; I'll warn you, don't harm my friends or me, otherwise you've declared war on the Empire of Ygg-Chall, I am Lord Erasiel Nathan Darkar! Emperor of Ygg-Chall!" Erasiel yelled at the warriors this caused them to take aback face. "Now you may be wondering what in the name of Asha we are doing here on this shore of a river, inside the borders of your Kingdom, first off, we were washed ashore after we were forced into said river running from an Army of Tar Monsters and Hell Mastiffs, secondly, we bare you no ill will, third I demand to see your leader and negotiate with your most available representative and if I have to I brought diplomatic gifts" Erasiel explained the warriors stood at attention talked in their own language before releasing the others.
"Pack up your camp, we will take you Downland City, Princess Amentia will speak with you but be warned, she has a severe temper and it would be unwise to come unready" Erasiel noted.
"Alright, now we will do that" Erasiel instructed, he then grabbed Stella's back and pulled out the luxury clothes she had bought in Ygg-Chall before handing them to other girls. "Put these on, we'll need to make a proper first impression" Erasiel instructed. "Alright guys let us turn away and allow the ladies privacy to dress" Erasiel instructed. A few minutes later everyone had changed, not just outfits but a in a few cases hair as well, Stormy had her hair straight something Erasiel had not seen from her ever: while Shilly had let down her hair. They each wore an exotic outfit different but similar to the outfit Stella wore, the colors were ones that they thought suited them, granted Stormy was wearing orange where she would usually be wearing burgundy, or red, and Pusilitia was clad in white that matched hair, though everyone else wore their usual color of clothing.
"This is so revealing" Vera commented shyly.
"Don't worry it's just to put on a good impression" Nimeria stated then they packed the sleeping bags.
"Ok, now follow them and me" Erasiel ordered after the camp had been packed. Erasiel asked the guards about Amentia and the things she liked, wanting to put on a good first impression and making sure that he didn't offend her, he soon discovered she was a perfectionist, was very beautiful but easy to anger, she loved martial pursuits but loved the arts as well, she liked the finest things you could get; Erasiel also discovered her height, size, and other things. Along the road Erasiel put together five gifts; the first was a spear made of Relix and reinforced by runes placed on it by the Dwarves, second was a masterwork Aetherium coat of plates it shimmed golden with crimson silk padding under the plates it was reinforced with Dwarven runes, it was designed specifically with a person of Amentia's build in mind, the third was satin silk gown made by finest tailors on Magix, his own the Handmaidens of Scalespire; fierce warriors but master artisans of many crafts, the forth was a fine necklace made of mithril and decorated with red star sapphires as well as being inscribed with Runes of protection and accompanying it were matching other pieces of jewelry, the fifth was several masterwork silk cushions wrapped in the softest of blankets as well as the warmest; Erasiel had been saving these for a wedding present; but they would make a good diplomatic gift, Erasiel also made sure he wore his regal armor without his helmet and made sure everything was spotless and not one thing was out of place; making sure not to even remotely anger the Princess's perfectionist side.
They marched forward following the crystals that dotted the cavern ceiling, Erasiel was introduced to the pixies who had bonded with Stella and Musa, their names were Amore and Tune, Amore was the Pixie of Love and emotions, she wore a crimson floral gown and sandals, with lime green wings and long red rose colored hair, she was fair as sunshine, Tune was pixie in a fine blue gown and obsessed with manners and making sure she looked proper, she had long purple hair in a 18th century style and had purple wings her skin was white. The march came until they arrived at great gateway, which the guards opened, it revealed a vast city carved into the cavern floor with grand architecture similar to that of Mayans, at the epicenter was grand palace, surrounded by grand aqueducts and gardens, near this was grand crystal similar to those found in the caverns they had passed thru. "Behold the Royal City of Downland" the Guard introduced.
"It's marvelous" Vera stated.
"It's a nice place" Stormy remarked.
"All this underground?" Musa questioned.
"Yes, the grandest of our cities" The guard replied, they strode thru the main gate, Erasiel instructed the girls to follow him in a certain pattern some carried the gifts he brought with him and with a grace that nothing was out of place, Stormy was carrying Stella, which would be to latter's chagrin if she woke up, but the spell would last a few hours yet; and Stormy was glad that Stella neither snored nor talked in her sleep.
"Why did you have me carry her?" Stormy asked Erasiel annoyed by Stella's weight.
"Because Stormy you are the strongest here besides me also can you imagine the hilarity that would ensue if the first person she saw when she woke up was you" Erasiel replied.
"Good point; I sure would like to see Stella's face if she did wake up" Stormy remarked.
Soon they approached the central plaza and passed the great bazaar in the center of the city where merchants purchased a variety of goods the markets were mix of Downlanders, Dwarves, Elves, both Deep Elves and Dark Elves, as well as few Skavan though these were few and far between, the Rat-Men were not the kind that commonly traded outside their race, and any that did had to be watched with both eyes for a double cross at all times. They then passed the Great Crystal; which according to the guards was the fountain from which their entire race's souls came from and that every Downlander was tied to a crystal in the caverns, the most pristine and those that broke off of the Great Crystal belonged to those of the Royal Bloodline. They then marched up a small hill and arrived at the courtyard where a line of nobles stood in front of them. "No! NO! and No! Guards see this fool out of my sight now!" a woman's voice yelled, suddenly a loud yell was heard as a man was flung out followed by his guards. "Next!" the voice shouted.
"That would be her highness Princess Amentia, at the moment she is up for marriage and numerous suitors have come her way, the Princess of Downland is allowed to wed whom she chooses once she comes of age, as soon as she marries she crowned Queen of Downland, and her royal parents step aside from the royal crown into retirement" The Guard explained.
"So that's great we have someone who's super picky and she's looking for a husband; that is nuts" Stormy remarked.
"Not to mention how are we going to explain that we aren't here as suitors" Musa remarked.
"For now its best that we just play along; we'll just have to show her that we are lost in the caves and we can get back to Ygg-Chall, or have them find our friends and get here, if I remember correctly there are some routes that will get us back to Magix City, in fact some entrances might go into the Catacombs under Alfea or Cloud Tower, Anyway we'll just have to see what happens" Erasiel commented optimistically.
"You are one heck of an optimist" Ivey remarked.
"I always thought the definition of an optimist was simple: an optimist takes a look at situation that looks completely impossible and then says 'Yeah alright I'll have a go' that's exactly how I am" Erasiel replied. The line narrowed, as more nobles either left dejected or were flung out, in addition there were also some commoners as well, so the definition of anyone meant anyone regardless of class. Soon it was narrowed down to one young Trog ahead of them: he had a bouquet of roses Erasiel however had keen eyesight even without his glasses and he didn't need them on to notice one of the roses had wilted; the rest were fine.
"Next" Amentia stated, then the young Trog approached her. "Ah Spontus again; well let's see if the gift is good this time" Amentia stated. "Flowers how sweet" Amentia commented then studied the flowers, then she discovered the wilted rose. "Spontus! Again, you disappoint me! One of these roses is wilted, that means the others are soon to follow! Thus, you have not brought the perfect gift, Guards!" Amentia stated and Spontus was seized by the guards. "Throw him out! Goodbye once again Spontus!" Amentia commented, and the guards lobbed him. "Next" Amentia stated at this point she was sounding like a person at the DMV who was getting rather annoyed with the people. Then her eyes fell on Erasiel and his on hers and they examined each other. Amentia was slim but well-endowed and graceful. She has purple hair, hazelnut eyes, a pale-yellow skin tone typical of her people, and war paint-like paint on her cheeks. She wore a pale red gown and an orange shawl around her arms. She also had a small crown on top of her head and wore sandals on her feet. "Well what have we here; a stunningly handsome man, a prince of some far away land at least if I can judge by the armor alone, and you are in top shape as well nothing out of place and you have a feathery cape" Amentia greeted Erasiel.
"My Tail actually; Lord Erasiel Nathan Darkar of House Darkar, son of Lord Argulus and Lady Avarra Darkar, brother to Zephyr, Irietta, Eris and Arantir Darkar; Emperor of Ygg-Chall and savior of the Magic Dimension about 10,000 times at least, probably more, as well the Phoenix King and consort Asha the Phoenix Queen and Greater Phoenix of Order" Erasiel introduced, with a flourish from his staff. "I come bearing gifts hoping to make a good impression on you and hope for diplomatic ties and helping me and my friends with our helps; ladies the gifts please" Erasiel instructed, Vera stepped up first on cushion was the spear. "A Spear made of the finest Relix and escribed by the master Dwarven Runesmith Rogni Earthbreaker" Erasiel explained, handing the weapon to Amentia, Amentia indicated to one of her guards and proceeded to engage in a mock combat with him, one which she quickly won.
"Impressive I love the feel of this weapon it is the finest weapon I've ever wielded, but you said you had more gifts well bring the forward" Amentia stated, then Pusilitia walked forward with the full set of Aetherium armor on a large cushion.
"A masterwork set of Aetherium armor, forged by the Dwarves specifically by the Master Smith Gamul Stormbeard, with runes forged by Rogni Earthbreaker; this armor is as light as silk but stronger than three-miles of granite; in other words there are very few things that can scratch this armor, let alone penetrate it, try it on for yourself" Erasiel stated, and Amentia took the armor and came back, dressed and moving with the grace of a ballet dancer; well a ballet dancer in full Dwarven forged plate and carrying a spear and preforming combat flourishes.
"This is fluid, it fits like a glove, it's fashionable but also quite functional" Amentia stated. "But surely there is more" Amentia noted.
"Yes, three more gifts in fact; Shilly if you would be so kind bring forth the next gift" Erasiel instructed, Shilly walked up carrying the gift of the silk gown. "This gown was woven by the finest tailors in the Magic Dimension, my Handmaidens in Scalespire; they have millennia in their skills both in battle but also in more peaceful pursuits; definitely in craftwork" Erasiel stated. Amentia felt the gown, the silk was soft, she then stepped aside and came back a few minutes later warring the crimson gown, the corset was embroidered with gold and silver and the girdle was made of mithril.
"I love this gown, it is so soft but so light it feels like blankets wrapped around my body, but they aren't falling off of me, there isn't a stitch out of place either this a true master's work" Amentia remarked. "The other gifts now!" Amentia stated, she was eager Erasiel could see it her voice. Musa stepped forward carrying the jewelry.
"Jewelry of the finest craft and made by the Dwarven master jeweler Karok Stonepolisher, it's made of mithril but studded with the rare Star Sapphire, the most prized of dwarven jewelry, very valuable and easily worth the value of an entire city" Erasiel explained, Amentia put on the jewelry, it suited her and fit perfectly, Erasiel made sure to only put one ring in the collection and focused on bracelets and jewelry that didn't require the fingers to wear.
"Stunning it looks amazing; it feels amazing" Amentia commented. "The next gift: please" Amentia begged and Nimeria brought up the last gift the silken bedding and pillows.
"The finest in bedding, again made by my handmaidens, they will make sleep easy to achieve" Erasiel stated.
"You have one last gift to give me: yourself Erasiel Darkar, Guards." Amentia replied, the guards came to her. "Dismiss all my other suitors, I need look no more; I have found my prince: You Erasiel Darkar!" Amentia stated, all the girls' jaws dropped at this revelation bar Stormy and Nimeria who expected something like this and were grinning at the hilarity of the situation.
"And I accept your proposal" Erasiel stated, he had no issues with this.
"Good, now I must see to arranging quarters for you and your handmaidens" Amentia stated.
"Actually, they are just my friends, close friends, well love interests and in the case of three of them partners though I won't name names of how those three are" Erasiel explained.
"Ah I see, well do not worry I take no offense to this, I will see your friends are treated well, and I must see to the wedding arrangements: Guards inform my parents that I have made my choice for a husband and that the wedding be held on the morrow, also see to informing everyone about it" Amentia replied, the guards scrambled to carry out her orders. "Follow me, I will show your friends to their quarters, you will stay with me in mine, once I have seen to this we must prepare a feast; as to regards to wedding, we will be wed tomorrow, if you have others to invite we will send messengers to them and escort them here, as for the wedding itself you will become my King but I will rule Downland, in addition to our wedding goes my dowry, my handmaidens, ladies-in-waiting and servants as your concubines; our oldest daughter will ascend to the throne once she comes of age and marries, other than that I will handle the day to day affairs of my kingdom and you may come back and forth as you please but before you leave you must bed me and your new concubines all of them; then you must take some of our virgin blood and offer it as burnt offering to insure fertility and health" Amentia explained.
"Do you really have to go that into detail?" Musa groaned.
"I am merely telling my husband to be what his duties will entail, you won't have to concern yourself with any of it, unless you are offering yourself as my handmaiden to become his concubine" Amentia replied.
"No nothing of the sort, I mean I love him but I- you know what its best if I shut up now" Musa replied. "Man, if I wanted to talk about topics regarding Erasiel's sex appeal I would be better off asking Flora about that or Tecna, she thinks no one else is better than him, well I agree with her, no one I've met so far is as good as him and I love him for it despite his nymphomania and his polyamory" Musa thought to herself, she then went on step further and wrapped her arms around Erasiel's arm as they walked.
The continued down the hallway and entered a grand hall and ascended a grand stair which lead to large hallway with many doors, the guards opened each room, these were empty of any residents, they were fully stocked out. "This wing of the Palace is our most prestigious guest wing, no one stays here without the approval of a member of the royal family, you have my approval to stay here, choose which ever room you want, it won't matter much they are near identical and kept fairly pristine" Amentia explained, each of the girls immediately left for a room bar Stormy, Musa, and a still sleeping Stella.
"Stormy stay with Stella until she wakes up" Erasiel ordered.
"Alright I'll laugh at her face though when I tell her what happened while she was out though, that will be a picture for the Cloud Tower student magazine I'll tell you that" Stormy replied.
"I'll stay with Stella, best she see another Winx with her when she wakes up" Musa explained.
"Thank you Musa, also give her this from me" Erasiel replied giving her a kiss on the cheek.
"I'm not sure I can give that to her, but I can definitely let her know you're available" Musa stated, and left Erasiel with Amentia.
"So, this Stella what is she in terms of relation with you?" Amentia asked Erasiel.
"Friend dear friend, possible love interest, depends how she feels about me; she is a Princess though, the Princess of Solaria, she is very much like you in that she always tries to do her best; she's dear to me" Erasiel replied as they strolled down the halls.
"Well you should tell her how you feel about her at some point" Amentia commented.
"I know, but she's currently on a hiatus from dating anyone really, her last relationship well it ended on a sad note, neither of them broke each other's hearts or anything it was just a matter of that fact that well his friend a Prince had himself pose as him for security reasons, only problem said prince was a heartbreaker; trust me if you ever met that prince you would want to castrate him for what he's done, anyway his friend who's name is Brandon is his squire and he assumed his role, Brandon and Stella really loved each other but, when the whole thing was exposed, they broke up, they couldn't continue a relationship that had been started on a lie, it just wouldn't work out in the long run, both of them value honesty but they couldn't in good conscience continue to be romantically involved, their still friends but that's all they are now, the biggest hurdle for their relationship was Stella's royal line and that well their parents wouldn't approve of their relationship" Erasiel explained.
"Ah I see you are worried then her parents won't approve of your relationship?" Amentia replied.
"No not that, her father and I are actually good friends I actually trained him when he was boy, we've been friends ever since, but not the reason is I'm not sure if she feels that way about me, also on the topic my own parents I don't need their approval for any relationship; I've been out of their authority for a long time, I'll invite them to weddings and family reunions but ask their advice no: my Father would simply agree with me and my mother would be absolutely telling me no" Erasiel explained.
"You must have an interesting family" Amentia commented.
"Trust me you have no idea, my family is well big, and to a degree how should I put it hectic, and weird, and sometimes annoying but they're my family none the less and above all else we Phoenixes value our families first and foremost" Erasiel explained, they continued talking about this for a while.
Later… Stella groaned as she woke up. "Finally, you woke up sleeping beauty" Stormy remarked.
"Stormy? Where am I? And why are you wearing my dress?" Stella asked fully awake.
"Downland, specifically in the royal palace, also as to why I'm wearing your dress: Diplomatic protocol; mainly to make a good impression on the local leadership, you've been out for a while now" Stormy explained.
"Alright I'll buy that, now how did we get here and more importantly what happened, the last thing I remember I hit a rock after Nathan pulled me into that river" Stella responded.
"That, well for starters, Nathan saved your life, he kept you from drowning and kept you a float, also he repaired your dress, kept you warm at while you slept, and healed your worse injuries, by the way Stella I wouldn't try standing up; you broke both of your legs" Stormy replied.
"He saved me? Well he did pull me into the river, but he saved me; also, my legs are broken?" Stella remarked and then tried to get up, but searing pain went thru both legs. "Yeouch! Alright Stormy I believe you on the legs front, they are definitely broken" Stella stated.
"I told you so, also you are perfectly fine, and we are in good hands, Nathan impressed the local princess with diplomatic gifts, also was looking for suitors and was absolutely smitten by him, they are going to marry tomorrow" Stormy explained.
"Wait! He's getting married, how did he manage to pull that one off? Also, how am I supposed to get around with my legs broken?" Stella asked.
"Ok first question: she was looking for a future husband and had gone thru a bunch of suitors, Nathan gave her best gifts and fit all the criteria she was looking for in a husband, but that isn't a problem remember he's not monogamous, as to getting you about I'll see about getting you a wheel-chair to move about in" Stormy responded, when the door opened, Musa walked in wearing another of Stella's outfits.
"Oh, Stella you're awake I was worried, just left your bedside to use the bathroom and I'm back; are you alright?" Musa stated.
"I'm fine apart from the broken legs and that everyone seems to be wearing my clothes without my permission for diplomatic reasons; and that fact that Nathan is getting married without telling me" Stella replied.
"You were out for a day Stella" Musa explained.
"Oh yes, of course, well now don't just stand there, Stormy you said you were going to try and find a wheelchair please do that now, I can't just lie in bed all day, also Musa see if you can find me some local clothing, the kind of nobility, in fact just ask the Princess she will probably know where to find some, as for me well I'll just lay here until you get back" Stella instructed, Stormy and Musa did as she asked and left the room.
"Bossy much" Musa remarked after she and Stormy got a respectable distance from Stella's room.
"Completely Musa, normal sometimes I wonder how we are still friends with her" Stormy remarked.
"Mainly because her faults are easily made up for by her good traits, and because she is well, a princess who doesn't look down on those not of nobility" Musa replied.
"Please royalty that looks down on the public is so rare now a days, anyway how picky do you think Stella will be about the outfit?" Stormy replied.
"Please this is Stella were talking about, She'll probably go through 50 outfits before even considering which one is suitable for her choice, let alone which is fashionable" Musa remarked and they both laughed.
Meanwhile…. Erasiel and Amentia's journey led them to the throne room where the current Queen and King sat on their thrones; they were both rather obese and had yellow skin that was where the similarities ended, Amentia's mother had the same purple hair as Amentia and navy-blue eyes, despite her obese weight she was still rather fair of face. The King had navy hair and a goatee, his eyes were hazelnut like Amentia's and he was stern of face. "Erasiel these are my parents, King Enervus and Queen Feoda, father and mother this is the one I have chosen as my betrothed, he is Lord Erasiel Nathan Darkar, the Emperor of Ygg-Chall and the Phoenix King; his noble status is unquestionable, and he has met my high standards for a husband, not just met them exceeded them" Amentia explained.
"Indeed, he seems to be a charming young man, however what do you have to say for yourself Lord Darkar?" King Enervus asked.
"Well for starters, Lord Darkar is my father, please refer to me as Nathan, as to my heritage, well I am a member of House Darkar one of the most prestigious and great Phoenix Houses, I am the son of Lord Argulus Darkar of Shadowhaunt and Lady Avarra 'Brightstone' Darker of Brightspire, I have four siblings, two older sisters: Zephyr and Irietta, my twin sister Eris, and my younger and quite queer brother Arantir; I have a long and prestigious history as well as numerous family records, I am one of the most powerful magic users in the Magic Dimension and the Head of the Wizard's Council; the active head so to speak I generally stay out of the Council politics unless it is absolutely important and defer to the more politically savvy of my associates in my party specifically the ones who won't do stupid things as well as those who I can trust; on top of that I am a former Professor of the Graynor Academy; the ill-fated original academy not the current one; other than these I am a firm follower of Asha and her herald and prophet, I am also her consort and thus am Phoenix King; I have a number of other titles but if I listed those off we would be here all month; therefore I await your approval; know that your daughter however has already chosen" Erasiel stated.
"I see, well Feoda dear what do you think?" King Enervus asked.
"I personally approve it, know that is I who makes the final call on this, the female is the royal head of state and the bloodline that matters, however I trust Amentia has already explained this; Enervus what do you think?" Queen Feoda responded.
"I personally like the man, he has a long and proven record of nobility, he is a perfect choice for Amentia; I only have one thing to request of him and that is he takes good care of our daughter" King Enervus noted.
"I see then we are in agreement, you have our blessing daughter, I trust you have given the necessary orders for the ceremony?" Queen Feoda said.
"I have mother, we are to be wed on the morrow, now with your permission I will take leave, and show my husband to be around the palace and introduce him to those who he will take as concubines" Amentia stated, she and Erasiel left. A few minutes later they arrived at a hall in which statues of the previous queens and their kings were arrayed.
"These are the previous rulers of Downland, each of the Queens was allowed to take whomever they wished as a spouse" Amentia explained, Erasiel looked over the statues and noted the variety, the Queens were fair to look upon but had some uniformity in appearance, he noted the most recent statue was of Amentia and had yet to have an accompanying statue, he then noted that the Queen of five generations back had a Horse for a husband.
"A horse for husband?" Erasiel questioned.
"Oh yes that, Queen Inderve; very eccentric and a bit mental, and before you ask yes we can breed with horses; though the results are interesting, don't worry we the offspring weren't centaurs" Amentia replied.
"Still though that is abnormal, I heard tale of this emperor, Caligula, about 2000 years ago who made his horse his chief advisor; he was insane but also he made a good political statement and that was he trusted his horse more than any of the aristocracy of similar status" Erasiel explained.
"Interesting what happened to this Emperor" Amentia asked.
"He was assassinated by his own bodyguards over a bad joke; and I'm not joking about that; he called the leader of his bodyguards effeminate and he didn't like that at all, a day later he was killed by his body guards though it took 50 stabs to actually kill him and I'm not joking about that either, remember these guys were the most elite soldiers his empire had to offer yet it took then 50 stabs with swords to kill him" Erasiel explained, Amentia laughed at this. "I'm serious" Erasiel stated.
"I know you are, but the whole situation is rather hilarious isn't it, anyway nothing of the sort happened to Queen Inderve, she lived a long and prosperous life, though it took her 10 children before she had a daughter, and then another 20 years before that daughter found a husband" Amentia explained "Any other crazy people you know with horses?" Amentia asked.
"Actually yes, my colleague Balthazar Gelt comes from a different world and a large Empire, in this Empire there is an Emperor who rules over several different counties each of which is represented by an Elector Count, who is a prince in their own right, every time the Emperor dies they elect one of their number as the new Emperor, now of these counts there is a Count by the name of Marius Leitdorf, he is the Count of Averland and often referred to as the Mad Count of Averland, he is a military genius and a good leader, however he is insane; his chief advisor is his horse Daisy Kurt von Helboring II, whose name is actually an insult to the top general in the Empire the Reiksmarshal Kurt Helborg whom Marius dislikes; anyway his horse has given him some actually good advice allowing him to win some battles" Erasiel explained.
"An interesting character, any exploits to his name?" Amentia stated.
"Well he is known for a number of victories against the Greenskins and the Vampire counts of Sylvania; he also has won victories against trees, bees, and fishmen and he is infamous for attacking the Moot, and viciously killing Halflings for the non-payment of taxes even though the Moot is its own separate county with their own Elector; as to how halflings managed to get their own county well it was because of this Emperor: Ludwig the Fat who gave the county to a Halfling Chef who made him the best meal he ever had and thus gave him a land for his fellow Halflings; well gave them land he stole from the counties of Averland and Stirland and this happened to be their best farmland; basically he kicked out the people living there and the Halflings moved in. Anyway, Marius attacked the Halflings which was not a tolerable action by the Emperor, one Karl Franz; so, he sent his champion Ludwig Schwartzhelm to discuss the matter with Marius, now Ludwig is the Emperor's personal champion and one of the best fighters in the Empire the only equals to him are Kurt Helborg and the Emperor himself, anyway Karl figured that one of three things would happen; A. Marius challenged Ludwig to a fight and died in said fight. B. That he would imprison Ludwig and thus give the Emperor a reason to dethrone Marius and put someone else in his place or C. Marius would knock it off and withdraw from the Moot" Erasiel explained.
"Which choice did Marius make?" Amentia asked fascinated by the story.
"Well surprisingly Marius knocked it off and paid recompense to the Halflings and so far hasn't attacked them since" Erasiel answered.
"Well he is certainly an interesting character even more then that Emperor Caligula you told me about earlier" Amentia stated. "Anyway, we must see the sculptor her name is Iriti and she is one of my handmaidens and the greatest sculptor in Downland" Amentia explained.
"I see I guess this for my statue isn't it?" Erasiel replied.
"Yes it is" Amentia explained, and they went into the next room where they found Iriti, she was a beautiful Downlander clad in a green toga and a pair of sandals, she had long navy-Blue hair and green eyes, her skin was the same pale yellow as every other Downlander he had met so far. "Iriti, you don't have to wait anymore, I have chosen my husband to be and your soon to be partner" Amentia explained.
"I can see that, boy his such a stud, you chose well Amentia; now I must get to sculpting, first off though I need him to change into the attire of a prince; have him do that first, I'll ready the clay and my chisel" Iriti responded.
"Yes indeed, come on Erasiel, I must see to getting you a suitable outfit, one of your choosing of course" Amentia explained. They left the room and returned about 15 minutes later, Erasiel was clad in a fine orange cave-cotton shirt and tunic, over which was a purple cloth, he wore a crown of gold decorated with emeralds, he also wore sandals, Amentia had painted the markings of a groom on his hands and face.
"You look handsome my dear Erasiel" Iriti remarked.
"Not yours yet Iriti, but I do say I've out done myself" Erasiel stated.
"Indeed, now stand over there and hold your staff, I will need you to strike a pose of glory with your staff and hold it for a few seconds, once I have the picture in my mind I can sculpt it flawlessly" Iriti stated, Erasiel did as instructed and held his staff aloft for about a minute. "Excellent now you're done with your pose, now leave me; I will take a couple hours to finish my work and then it will have to dry; off you go I must have no distractions" Iriti stated.
"Erasiel it is late in the day, it is best that we retire to my quarters, I will introduce you to your future concubines" Amentia explained.
"Yes, but I need to do one thing first, send messenger to the Dark elf city of Igzera, my other friends well have made it there by then" Erasiel stated.
Meanwhile… Bloom paced back and forth while Flora wept in the corner, Icy was in grief; Kerborg stood stoically. "They have been gone so long I'm worried about them" Bloom noted. "Kerborg can you try and see if you can get in touch with Nathan again I'm worried sick about him" Bloom commented.
"Yes, I can do that" Kerborg noted then sent of a physic link, sudden he got a reply.
"Kerborg? Good to see you've finally got thru, is everyone alright?" Erasiel responded physically.
"Yes, everyone made it thru the caverns unscathed, our pursuers gave up the chase when they lost in the caverns" Kerborg explained.
"Good and the Pixies?" Erasiel asked.
"All here and present, none of them were recaptured" Kerborg explained.
"Good is Piff alright?" Erasiel asked.
"She is sleeping like a baby my lord" Kerborg responded.
"Good, now I need you to get the others together and get guides to Downland, get there as fast as possible, you'll meet up with messengers along the way, I'm getting married, also tell the others that those with me are alright apart from Stella, she broke both her legs in the rapids of an underground river" Erasiel instructed.
"Yes, my lord it will be done" Kerborg stated. "Good news Bloom, I've got in touch he and the others are alright and they are in Downland" Kerborg stated.
"Thank goodness, are they alright" Bloom asked.
"Everyone is fine apart from Stella, she broke both of her legs" Kerborg explained.
"I see well that's better than any of them being dead" Icy remarked. "What about Stormy is she alright?" Icy asked.
"Yes, she is along with everyone else, Lord Erasiel instructed me to gather all of you and get guides to take us to Downland" Kerborg explained.
"So, he isn't heading here to us, why is that?" Flora asked.
"He didn't say; I am assuming it must be diplomatic reasons, I assume the Downlanders have held him up for some negotiations" Kerborg stated.
"Well I hope we don't have to save his butt" Icy remarked.
"He said he and the others were fine I assume that whatever reason he is still in Downland must be a good one" Kerborg stated.
"Well we can hope that; still betting we'll might have to save him" Icy stated.
"Any reason you say that?" Bloom remarked.
"You've been with him enough to know he gets into trouble very often" Icy replied.
"Oh, you're right I guess I'm too optimistic" Bloom replied.
"Don't worry Bloom, I'm sure he meant what he said when he said he and the other were fine" Icy replied. "Just a bit concerned that's all, just might have to bail him out" Icy noted.
"One more thing you must dress in regal clothing, you will want to make good impression" Kerborg noted.
Later…. Erasiel had been introduced to Amentia's handmaids and ladies in waiting, each of them were beautiful and athletically fit, Amentia insisted on each of them knowing how to fight, believe that the warrior profession was the most important; if you can't protect what you have you aren't going to be able to keep it. Milatra was the chief of the Handmaids, she had long purple hair much like Amentia, but she kept it in pigtails, she had blue eyes and was gorgeous, each of her handmaids were in fact. "Now the evening grows late Erasiel and thus we must retire, we shall head to the boudoir mine paramour" Amentia noted. "We shall not mate until after our marriage, however we will sleep without any clothing as is custom, a worthy groom will prove his loyalty by leaving his bride a virgin until they are wed" Amentia explained, they then entered the bedroom and the door was shut behind them, they disrobed of all clothing and wrapped themselves in the blankets, Amentia however snuggled with him as she fell asleep, Erasiel wrapped his feathered tail around her and he stared at the ceiling for a moment, he then slept.
That night he dreamt of old battles specially those against his fellow Phoenixes in the Phoenix Wars; the conflicts he considered the worse because if there was one thing Erasiel despised above all else was having to fight those of his own kind who's hearts were vile and sought to comment all kinds of atrocities. His foes were however replaced by Abolithon, for every enemy had his face, he noted it was dream however and replaced the surroundings with that of his gardens in Scalespire, with large groups of lovely maidens and nymphs as well as young maids, none had clothing and he then participated in acts of pleasure with each. As the dream continued Erasiel soon was awakened by Amentia. "Good morning my love: the day has come, we must get ready" Amentia explained, she had already redressed, Erasiel got up, realizing he had overslept as he normally did.
Shortly after dressing he left with Amentia and soon was met by two people, specifically Icy and Bloom, who were dressed in fine Dark Elven clothing
"There you are you have any idea how worried we were for you, now what did you do while we were separated, get invited to marry a Princess, how the hell did you pull that off" Icy exclaimed.
"By sheer luck and being prepared for any situation Icy, I'm so glad to see you" Erasiel responded hugging her, which she reciprocated, Bloom also hugged him.
"I'm so glad to see you alright" Icy responded with a smile on her face.
"I'm glad to see you and the others are fine, though Stella did chew my ear off over my choice of outfit, I thought it looked great" Bloom stated.
"Did she tell you I saved her life?" Erasiel noted.
"She did, though I am sad about her legs" Bloom stated.
"Don't worry when we get back to Alfea Nurse Ofeila will patch those up" Erasiel explained.
"And you can't?" Bloom noted.
"I'm not a medical expert and Phoenix tears don't heal bones" Erasiel noted. "In fact, there are few spells that can mend broken bones" Erasiel noted.
"I see, well I'm glad you did all you could for Stella anyway Nathan" Bloom responded.
"Now I need to see to preparations for the ceremony, I'll need to get ready and on top of that I'm going to see Stella and see how she is doing" Erasiel explained. "One more thing Bloom what were the names of the Pixies who went with you and the others, and who bounded with who?" Erasiel asked.
"Well my pixie's name is Lockette, she's the one with pink hair and the pink dress, Flora bonded to a chatty pixie named Chatta who is obsessed with gossip of any kind, Ayesha bonded to a baby pixie named Piff, Tecna bonded to this techy pixie named Digit, Diaspro bounded to a pixie named Mola who is the pixie of Gems, then Francis bounded to this other baby pixie named Glim; so far all the Pixies have been well chatty apart from Piff who has been sleeping, anything else you want to know?" Bloom replied.
"No but I do have one thing to let you know, because of the threat posed by Abolithon to the Pixies I will be going to Alfea indefinitely, in fact I will probably serve there as an assistant teacher; so, look forward to me being around a lot more" Erasiel responded.
"Hey what about me and my sisters?" Icy asked.
"Don't worry I'll still be teaching you three, or now four, just later in the day then we used to and more on the weekends, other than that you'll still have your own classes at Cloud Tower to attend." Erasiel explained.
"Well that's reassuring" Icy commented.
"I'll have to see to getting you and your sisters pixies at some point but that will have to wait until later, when Abolithon's guard has slipped or when he is distracted" Erasiel stated. "For now, I have other things to attend, see you later at my wedding, also try not to antagonize the locals same rules as in Ygg-Chall other than that you are fine" Erasiel stated and then left.
Later… Stella sat in a wheelchair looking out the window at Downland. "What an interesting city, I would so go shopping here if my legs weren't broken, at least I didn't lose anything in that river" Stella thought to herself, suddenly her eyes were covered.
"Guess who?" Erasiel teased.
"I know it's you Nathan" Stella replied.
"Good to see you awake, you took a beating in that river, trust me Stella, I managed to heal what I could but not everything" Erasiel stated.
"No biggie, you saved my life that I am grateful for and won't forget anytime soon" Stella replied. "Now tell me more about this Princess Amentia and more importantly how you managed to pull that whole thing off; I still can't believe all this actually happened" Stella inquired.
"As for the pulling this off, well I'm on smooth operator for one, secondly I know how interact with people, know how study them, I need little information, I've got millennia of experience, third: Amentia was desperate she had gone thru about 20 suitors before I came to her, and with a bit of information from the guards I managed to know what gifts would impress her also as to why I was carrying gifts like that around and how I was; well first off I like to be prepared for any situation, secondly, bottomless well spells on my bags, in fact more advanced, private storage dimensions for each bag; trust me I've got something for every situation in there, regardless of size" Erasiel explained. "Now as to Amentia she's nice once you get to know her, very kind to those she respects, but she has a short-temper and she's a perfectionist, do anything that annoys her or fail to give her proper attention she'll throw you about 10 yards, I've seen her do that" Erasiel noted. "as to her appearance well she is very beautiful, and extremely fit, over all I love her; she loves me, there isn't much not to love" Erasiel explained.
"I see, now I hope you weren't trying to woe me, it takes a lot more then saving my butt to get me to offer my hand in marriage" Stella stated.
"Is it enough to get you to date me?" Erasiel replied.
"Well I guess so, but not now, I'm still on a hiatus, give a me a week to think on it then we'll see about dating also I hope we can get out of here soon, the lack of sunlight is starting to make me sick" Stella replied. Erasiel soon left and Stella resumed thinking "Idiot Stella, you should have told him how you felt about him then and there" Stella's conscience stated. "I wasn't sure if he felt the same way about me; I'm not going to rush into a relationship that might not work out, especially not so soon after what happened with Brandon" Stella replied to her conscience. "It has been seven months since you and Brandon broke it off, and you did so on good terms, what's to worry about with Erasiel?" her conscience chimed back. "Well he's a womanizer" Stella bluntly stated. "So, he isn't a heartbreaker, and more importantly he cares for the women he loves" her conscience replied. "Well I'm worried he wouldn't feel the same about me" Stella stated, and the debate continued.
Two hours later… The great courtyard of the palace gardens was now filled with guests, the alter was maned by a fat but jolly priest, Erasiel stood looking at the crowd clad in the wedding outfit Amentia had chosen for him, this consisted of a tunic, a vest, two golden wristbands, an articulated cuirass, and a crown made of gold and decorated with emeralds, the cloth was purple and crimson, he wore sandals and his tail hung out the back. He studied the audience, recognized familiar faces, in addition to the Winx a number of his Dark Elf associates were there alongside Kerborg and Gripmaw, both stood in front of him directly with their backs to him as they were his best-men, he noted that to his side was another person a herald with the royal crown of Downland sitting on it, as soon as they were wed Amentia would be crowned Queen, Erasiel noted that this would be off immense use to him, especially that when their first daughter was old enough and got married she would rule Downland; granted having a daughter was easy, 75% of children a Phoenix would have were female, the females outnumbered males by the shocking margin. Soon trumpets rung out, Erasiel noted as Amentia strode forward accompanied by her handmaids and other Ladies in waiting who would soon be his concubines, each were beautiful, though Amentia was the fairest of them all, with Iriti and Milatra coming second, however every one of the future concubines were beautiful. Amentia wore a radiant gown, it was crimson and gold, it left her navel bare, and highlighted her curves, the corset of the gown made her breasts smaller than usual, the tail of the gown hugged the ground, her head was unadorned apart from her vail and bejeweled broach in her hair, she wore the jewelry he had given her yesterday. "Ladies and Gentlemen, we welcome you to a new chapter in Downland's history, the time where once again the crown is passed to a new queen, and like all passings of the crown it begins with a wedding; today in the eyes of the gods we seal together two souls in eternal union, for the first time in Downland's history however our Princess will wed a Phoenix, and not just any Phoenix but a member of the most prestigious house Darkar; today we will bind in eternal union Lord Erasiel Nathan Darkar, and Princess Amentia I as well as bestow her highness's handmaids, servants, and ladies in waiting as concubines to her husband as is tradition: now let the bride come forth" the Crier announced, Amentia and her attendants came forward, Amentia strode up the Alter to Erasiel's side, behind the alter the aqueducts flowed into the Hanging Gardens that festooned the Palace courtyard; the alter had a silver basin in it.
"To recognize and seal this union, it is done as all unions must be done, both the bride and groom shall step forward to the alter and repeat the vows of marriage" the Priest explained, both Erasiel and Amentia stepped forward and said words in the tongue of Downland, speaking the vows of love and marriage. "Now that those vows have been spoken step forward" the Priest explained and pulled out a ceremonial knife. "As is our custom a marriage can only be sealed in blood, no other offering will do, both spouses take on the duty to protect each other from all threats and from death; to represent it both the Bride and Groom shall outstretch their dominant hand" The Priest explained. Erasiel and Amentia did so and held their hands over the basin; the Priest cut open the palms of both the bride and groom who let blood pour into the basin, Erasiel's red blood mixed with the green blood of Amentia, the priest then wrapped a red cloth around the wounds of both. "Thus, has the offering been made, now the gods judge it worthy, the bride and groom are sealed to each other and the concubines are likewise sealed to the groom, you may kiss the bride" the Priest explained, Erasiel then kissed Amentia who kissed back aggressively. "Now for the final ceremony, the bedding, the groom shall now bed his bride and concubines at take a white cloth to collect their virgin blood, take the cloth to the alter and burn it, to insure fertility and health said ritual will be done in private" the Priest explained, a few people were completely weirded out by the last part.
A herald strode up. "Now for the latter half of the ceremony, the coronation, step forward Princess and Prince" the herald explained, both did so. "In the eyes of our gods and in the eyes of people, as is tradition, we crown a new ruler upon the wedding of the heir; thus, we crown now Princess Amentia" the Herald explained, and the priest grabbed the crown.
"All hail Queen Amentia, first of her name; Queen of Downland, daughter of Feoda XVII, long live the Queen!" the Priest stated as Amentia rose. "All King Erasiel Darkar, first of his name, King of Downland, Emperor of Ygg-Chall, Son of Argulus, long live the King!" the Priest stated and as Erasiel rose cries of "Long Live the Queen!" and "Long live the King!" rose out from the audience. "Does her majesty have anything to say?" the Priest asked.
"No, I will proceed to the bedding, no admittance to royal chambers by any bar his highness's concubines, on pain of death! After the bedding the feast will be held" Amentia stated and she and Erasiel withdrew followed by Erasiel's new concubines.
The hike to the bedchambers proved easy enough, no one barred the approach, they strode thru an outer room meant guard the approach, and the guards that had followed them assumed sentry crossing great pole-axes across the door, barring entry to any; then Erasiel and Amentia proceeded to a large bedroom, where a large bed was ready, on a nearby table were number of white clothes. "Concubines relieve me, and you master of any clothing, then assume disrobe yourselves and wait your turn, Iriti and Milatra will go after me, the white cloth shall be brought forward for each" Amentia instructed. The concubines removed Amentia's gown and stripped Erasiel of his garb leaving both naked; then Iriti brought a white cloth and handed it to Erasiel.
"For the Queen, master" Iriti explained.
"Yes, please call me Erasiel" Erasiel instructed, Amentia spread herself out for him.
"No foreplay, you are to take my virginity first, after such you are free to do as you please, my concubines and myself and knowledgeable in the seven arts of pleasure and the seven seats of love" Amentia explained, Erasiel obliged pulled her legs and entered her, in his right hand he held the cloth which was soon red with blood, Amentia didn't wince; then Erasiel slowly thrusted into her tossing the cloth to the side he wrapped his arms and pulled her to his face and kissed her, they kissed as Erasiel slowly thrusts, near them the concubines were content to watch. Erasiel's lips tenderly kiss Amentia's he grasped her butt-cheeks and turned over allowing her to ride him cowboy-style. Amentia moaned with pleasure as Erasiel's thrusts intensified, he then changed forms again after a minute spooning her as he drank from her breasts; the milk was sweet as wine to Erasiel, his thrusts upped further and within few more minutes he had peaked out and unloaded in Amentia, this load quite fertile and was guaranteed for the child. Erasiel then pulled out and lowered himself to suck Amentia's netherlips, his tongue moved back and forth, and Amentia moaned harder, his hands massaged her breasts and her limit was soon reached and her fluids poured out, Erasiel consumed them all. "Enough of you pleasing me, allow me to pleasure you" Amentia stated and lifted Erasiel who turned over, Amentia wrapped her amble E-cups around his phallus and massaged up and down, then wrapped her tongue around the tip before sucking, the Downlander gave him an impressive blowjob, preforming feliatio like an expert, were it not for the blood stains on the white cloth he would have assumed she wasn't a virgin given how skilled she was.
The pleasure from Amentia continued, Erasiel soon unloaded creaming her face and breast in a nice bukkake before flipping her over and taking her from behind, she was extra tight and extra thicc, his hand grasped her buttchecks swiveling them, soon again he finished leaving Amentia worn out. "Iriti you are next" Erasiel commented, the sculptor strode forward dancing all the way, with another white cloth in hand, Erasiel took her anally first as he had been eyeing Iriti's extra thicc ass since he saw yesterday; the pleasure proved great for Iriti, Erasiel continued for ten minutes before taking Iriti's cherry as well, she squeaked with pleasure then he pleased her, suckling her breasts like a babe his hands palming her hair, her hands petting his tail. Soon Iriti was at her limit, then Milatra came, she was followed by more, another after another, Erasiel's love session lasted for 2 hours, before Amentia and all 20 concubines lay passed out, Erasiel himself redressed went to the balcony after grabing the cloths and flew off to the large pyramid temple, where he burned the cloths as instructed