This chapter is NOT beta-read, so if anyone see any mistakes feel free to point them out!
The Hunter's Dream.
"More tea, my Lord?"
"Yes, please."
I smiled at Nctosa, with her twin Nctolhu nearby, both of them in their new french maid outfits and cheerfully doing their new job, while me and my wives, along with a few more people, were taking a break to relax and drink tea, coffee or whatever else they wanted to drink.
Nctosa served me another cup of tea, bending down just a bit more than was appropriate to let me have a very good look at her cleavage.
The hint of mischief in her smile showed that she knew exactly what she was doing, and very much enjoyed me looking.
"I see that you've quickly accustomed yourself to having maids around, my King." Yog declared with amusement, Yad nodding in agreement at her side.
Their training was progressing steadily, though it was going to take quite a long time before they truly were at the level I wanted them to be… Especially Yog, as the Outer Goddess of Time.
Yad, being a lot less powerful, allowed me to focus on widening her skillset over focusing on raw control like Yog desperately needed.
In short, while I was teaching Yog how to manipulate time across entire planets without also causing all kind of unwanted side-effects across the entire galaxy, Yad was doing the same with "merely" entire countries on a specific world.
"While I believe that never needing to rely on others to do something you can do yourself is a virtue, I am also aware that Kingship, and power in general, come with expectations. Having servants to cater to one's every need is part of fulfilling those expectations." I calmly replied.
"Oh? Do you require us to fulfill your every need, my Lord?" asked Nctolhu with a mischievous, eager tone of voice.
"It would be our joy and honor to please you, great Lord~!" Nctosa cheerfully agreed, her grin clearly lustful.
Azathoth glanced at them with amusement in her golden eyes, before giving me a grin.
"Interested?" she inquired, clearly entirely fine with me bending both maids over the table and fucking them right in front of her.
I rolled my eyes, a grin on my own lips. "Perhaps eventually, but I'd like to focus on training them and Cthylla up to a higher standard first. Though I must admit…" I glanced at the twin, who preened under my gaze. "They certainly make it difficult to hold back while in those outfits."
"I never knew that you were into maid play, Aeon!" Claire said cheerfully. "I approve!"
Jill snorted. "You're one of the most perverted of us all, I'm not surprised."
Claire sniffed contemptuously. "Lies and slander. I merely enjoy the finer things in life!" she leered at the twins. "Like twins in maid outfits."
"I'm surrounded by perverts." deadpanned Tatsumaki.
"Oh~? I distinctly remembers you enjoying creating psychic tentacles last night to-"
"Shh!" Tatsumaki waved her hand, creating a psychic gag over Claire's mouth while her cheeks turned red. "Shut up!"
"Mmmmhmhhmh~!" Claired mumbled, blue eyes twinkling.
Tatsumaki glared. "Stop licking the psychic gag! And- stop that! I'm feeling the way that you're twirling your tongue, and it's obscene- Gah!" The psychic gag faded away, Tatsumaki flinching back with a disgusted look.
Claire grinned. "Score one for shamelessness!"
"That's not something to be proud of, you dolt!"
I looked away as those two started bickering, meeting Oedon's amused red eyes.
"You know my thoughts on the matter." she simply said while glancing towards the twins.
I nodded. Both twins were beautiful, and so was Cthylla, but more importantly claiming all three would firmly bind Cthulhu to me in ways nothing else would.
From a political point of view, pulling all three of Cthulhu's daughters over my shoulders, throwing them on my bed, and then fucking them silly until they couldn't live without taking my dick every night was the best political move possible.
Also, Oedon wanted me to breed as many women as possible, because Eldritch Goddess of Life.
Still, so far I was busy teaching all three of said daughters about… a lot of things. Cthylla was smart, but incredibly sheltered, and her education was mostly focused on Earth and the local Eldritch. The twins, meanwhile, were Chaotic individuals, more interested in having fun than learning things, and as a result their education, and raw power, had suffered.
Of course, now that I was teaching them and that all three of them had the motivation to truly embrace The Way of the Grind, they were making good progress.
There was just so much I wanted to teach them that it was going to take hundreds of thousands of years at least until I was more or less satisfied, and that was only because I was cheating and using psychic powers to ensure that they were absorbing vast amount of information quickly, safely, and in a way that they would never forget it.
Though to be fair, the very first thing I did was to bolster their mental prowess by ensuring they would have an utterly perfect memory for the rest of forever.
Beyond that, teaching them all about diplomacy, etiquette, laws, but also about magic, psychic powers and martial skills made sure that their days were packed so completely that the twin hardly had the time to get up to mischief…
For the most part.
"Hmm. Looks like you're about to have a rather panicked visitor." Said Yog, Yad perking up and frowning before blinking a moment later. "And look, she's suffering from a rather amusing misunderstanding." added Yog, grinning in amusement.
I smiled, as I had encouraged Yog to actually make use of her future view more often, and she was slowly but surely getting comfortable over the fact that people weren't berating her for it.
"Well, let's see what I can do to calm whoever it is down, then." I declared, before getting up and moving towards the "entrance" of the Hunter's Dream… or rather the entrance of the mansion's garden within the Hunter's Dream.
Coming to a stop, I peered into the boundaries of space-time beyond the Dream, before raising an eyebrow at who I saw on the other side.
Letting the goddess enter, I was met with a visibly panicked Kassogtha, her golden eyes wide and her purple hair bouncing wildly as she appeared before me.
"Hello-"
"My king! Please show my daughters mercy!" she begged, bowing deeply.
I blinked. "What?"
"I know that they occasionally make mistakes and that their mischievous nature can cause issues, but please, don't judge them too harshly for it!" Kass kept pleading, still bowed deeply and her body trembling in desperation.
I stared, utterly bewildered.
"What?"
"If you have to punish them, then please just keep them in confinement for a time! Or even let me watch over them, I'll make sure that they don't cause more trouble, I swear it!" Kass continued, clearly oblivious to my utter confusion.
I let out a sigh, which only made Kass tremble even harder.
"Please!" she begged, her voice cracking. "I'll do anything-"
"Kass." I said firmly, the Eldritch Goddess flinching at the firm voice I spoke with. "I mean no offense, but… what the fuck are you talking about?!" I exclaimed, utterly bewildered.
Kass froze, finally looking up to stare at my incredibly confused expression.
She blinked.
"... Didn't my daughters cause some trouble?" she asked.
"No?" I answered, frowning. "What did you hear, exactly?"
"I heard that they did something that shocked you and annoyed you." she replied.
"... I mean, the first part is true, but not the second. If anything, I'm rather happy with what they decided to do." I told her.
Kass stared at me.
"What." she said flatly, disbelief thick in her expression.
"Kass…" I sighed. "Your daughters, along with Cthylla, have decided to become my personal maids."
Kass kept staring at me.
I stared back.
She kept staring.
I stared back.
She kept staring.
… I might have broken an Eldritch Goddess. Yay me?
"... Maids." she finally said blankly, a dumbfounded look on her face. "They… became your maids?"
"Yep." I replied, before explaining the whole thing with Cthulhu, Cthylla's suggestion, and how that ended with me gaining all three daughters of Cthulhu as my maids.
Kass kept staring at me as I spoke, an entirely blank expression on her face.
Then, when I finished, she spoke again, with a voice devoid of emotions.
"So… They didn't cause trouble?" she asked.
"They didn't cause trouble." I agreed.
"And you're happy with them?"
"And I'm happy with them. Sure, they occasionally do some pranks, and if it wasn't for the fact that my library is magical they would have caused me to spend hundreds of years reorganizing the books after they had the bright idea to switch everything up in different places, but overall? I'm pretty satisfied." I told her.
"... Right." Kass said slowly, her expression still eerily blank, though on the inside she was a chaotic mess of pride, relief and love for her daughters, and a staggering amount of embarrassment and shame for freaking out when there was no need to. "I'm… going to leave now, and never show my face again. That sounds like a great plan."
She turned to leave in a hurry, only for me to instantly catch her by the wrist and drag her with me towards the mansion.
"Nope!" I declared cheerfully. "I refuse, you have more important things to do than go scream into a pillow out of embarrassment! You can do that later, after you've met your daughters!"
Kass froze at my words, though she didn't resist me dragging her along after hearing about her daughters. A storm of emotions flashed on her face, ultimately settling on nervous anticipation of finally seeing her daughters when outside their previous prison.
"My King…" she trailed off, and I turned my head to grin at her. "No but! You three definitely need to spend some time together, so they can have the day off! And they don't work on weekends, so if you want to see them then, feel free."
She swallowed thickly, tears of gratitude in her eyes.
"I…" Whatever she was going to say was lost, as I waved to Nctosa and Nctolhu. "Hey girls, your mother's here! Come and say hello!"
Both girls perked up, wide, delighted smiles on their faces as they saw their mother, which I quickly brought to a stop in front of them.
"There! Now feel free to finally catch up properly, I'm sure that they'll be very proud of telling you all about their training with me and how well that's going so far."
Kass managed to tear her gaze away from her twin daughters at those words to look at me with confusion. "Training?" she inquired.
"That's right!" I said proudly. "I've decided that Cthylla and your daughters' education could use some work, especially if they work for me, so I've been training them in diplomacy, magic, psychic powers, and more! And they've been excellent students so far! Occasionally mischievous, but very hardworking and motivated!"
"That's…" Kass glanced at her daughters, who both nodded proudly.
"Lord Aeon is an excellent teacher!" "He knows so much, and he's really good at teaching it all to us!" "We're learning a lot at every lesson!" "Yay! He's a great teacher!"
Then they paused, and comically shuddered in unisson. "Very strict though…" "He's got very high standards." "And let's not even talk about punishment when we do something bad!"
Both women glanced at me fearfully at that last part.
"How did you punish them?" asked Claire with curiosity as she decided to involve herself in the conversation.
I merely smirked back. "Listening and watching for hours on end, without being able to look away or stop listening, to Nyan cat videos on loop."
Everyone who understood what I was talking about shuddered as one.
"That song." whispered Nctosa in horror. "I had it stuck in my head, refusing to leave, for so long afterward… I slept with it, dreamt with it!" she trembled, her twin hugging her with the same horrified expression. "I've seen actual memetic cognitohazard lifeforms less terrible than that thing..."
Kass blinked, clearly confused.
I merely chuckled darkly. "Next time, it'll be the teletubbies."
Several of my lovers flinched at my words.
"Those poor girls." whispered Lucy in numb horror and underlying amusement.
"Either way, Kass, by the time I'm done teaching them, they'll be some of the most educated Eldritch in existence." I said proudly.
That made Kass send me a look of such gratitude that it actually made me a bit uncomfortable, her golden eyes glittering with tears and her body now trembling from immense relief and joy for her daughters.
"Thank you." She told me with so much emotion that it would crush a mortal empath's mind like a bug under the sheer weight of it.
"You're welcome." I told her with a nod. "But really, it's your daughters that you should praise, for working so hard and diligently."
Kass turned towards her twins, who shuffled awkwardly under the weight of their mother's love and pride, the second emotion quite clearly not something they were used to having directed at them.
"Mother, we…" Nctolhu trailed off, looking unsure, before Kass threw herself forward and hugged them both tightly.
"I'm so proud of you two." came the muffled words from Kass, which made both twins clearly emotional as well, even if they were trying valiantly (and futility) to hide their own shining eyes full of tears.
"Come on, mom. We're working." choked out Nctosa.
"Yeah, we're supposed to look professional!" agreed Nctolhu, no less close to tearing up.
"Or at least, to look pretty and cute!"
"Or sexy!"
"We can't look professional or sexy if we're crying, mom!"
"Sorry, sorry." Kass laughed wetly, finally breaking the tight hug but still keeping her hands on her daughters' shoulders. "After all these years… My daughters are finally growing up…"
Kass burst into fresh tears, and amusingly both twins sent me panicked looks screaming for help.
I chuckled, before gently speaking to Kass.
"As I said, why not take those two with you for a few hours? Catch up and all that. I'm sure that nobody will raise a fuss if they are with you." I told her.
Both twins perked up at the thought of spending the day with their mother, and I was left to stare at three beautiful women all staring at me with immense gratitude in their eyes.
""Thank you, Lord! We'll make it up to you!"" both twins said while bowing deeply, their mother following suit a moment later.
"My daughters are right. Thank you so much for letting me see them, now or during the week-ends." Kass said with deep gratitude. "If you ever need anything, anything at all, just ask and I'll see it done."
I nodded. "I appreciate it." Then I grinned. "Now go, and I don't want to see you three at least until tomorrow, you hear me?"
Heartfelt thanks were once again given, before all finally three left.
I looked at them go with a smile, happy to have starting the healing process between mother and daughters, feeling rather proud of myself-
"So, who are you going to fuck first? The mother or the daughters?" asked Nyarlathotep with a wicked grin.
"Yog." said Aza flatly.
Smack!*
"Ow!"
"Thank you Yog."
"My pleasure."
-Yes, today was a good day.
Nctosa smiled brightly, same with her sister Nctolhu, as they along with their mother left the Lord of the Eldritch's personal realm and instead traveled to the their mother's home in the Void, a giant temple with many rivers and pools of water corrupted by her presence which were filled with eldritch diseases and mutated lifeforms, with thousands, if not millions of priests taking care of the day to day maintenance of the temple itself, while also welcoming any pilgrims who came to pray to the Great Old One in her own home.
All those priests had their bodies mutated by the diseases of their mother, her power acting like a parasite as it consumed a part of their body, mind and soul in exchange for Eldritch blessings. Their bodies were both immune to diseases and, at the same time, the greatest carriers of the diseases naturally created by their mother's power.
Those servants bowed at the passage of their goddess, many whispering prayers from whatever orifices they spoke from, though both daughters of Kassogtha could feel the subtle disapproval of the mortals at the sight of them, as neither twin daughters of their mothers were well seen by… well, anyone really.
Eons of ill-thought out pranks and the ensuing catastrophes made sure of that.
The feelings of the priests made their mother's smile twitch downwards a little, but thankfully not too much, as she was too happy right now to care about the mortals' opinions.
Finally, they arrived at the center of the temple, seeing for themselves their mother True Form, a writhing mass of purple tentacles living within a large pool of water corrupted by her power into becoming a large breeding ground for countless eldritch diseases.
Not that either of Kassogtha's daughters cared, as the daughters of the Great Old One of diseases they had nothing to worry about from their mother's power.
Both twins made themselves comfortable on seats made of mutated organic materials, still in their maids outfits.
"It's been far too long since we have been able to visit you here." Commented Nctolhu, with Nctosa nodding in agreement, her eyes taking in the sights around her with nostalgia.
"I remember playing in that pool with you and mother for so many millenia…" Nctosa said softly, old memories flashing with perfect clarity in her mind.
"It's good to be home." said Nctolhu, and she nodded in absolute agreement.
"It's good to have you back home, even if only for a day." psychically said their mother, discarding the human avatar and simply resting in her True Form, purple tentacles going to them to gently, lovingly stroke their currently human cheeks and hold their bodies.
Both twins relaxed in their mother's embrace, taking a moment to simply enjoy her warmth and love.
It has been far too many millions of years since they last could do this…
"So tell me, how are things going with our new King? From what I heard he's been good to you both." Their mother asked, the air rippling unnaturally from the psychic might of her voice.
"He really has." said Nctolhu. "Our fight within the Abyss had been… eye-opening. We always thought ourselves strong as your daughters, but the Demon Lords we saw and fought there were stronger than us. It was… not a good discovery, and it put a lot of things into perspective."
Nctosa nodded. "We're strong by mortal standards, but in the grand scheme of things… We are not anywhere near your level of power, mother. And for that matter, we aren't anywhere near father's own power either. We are…" her voice turned quieter, heavy with grim realization. "So much less than you both."
"My daughters… Power alone does not equal worth." gently declared Kassogtha.
Both twins smiled grimly at that.
"No, but it helps. Our new King is immensely powerful, and that alone would have seen him respected and worshiped. We do not seek to be worshiped as gods, but even so…"
Nctosa trailed off, and Nctolhu kept going.
"Even so, we decided that we needed to become more. To truly live up to the potential in our bloodline. And so we began training with Lord Aeon, something that we do not regret."
"No matter how terrible his punishments are when we step out of line." muttered Nctosa with a shudder, her twin shivering at her words.
"His training is harsh." continued Nctolhu. "The King is an absolute perfectionist, and he is not satisfied until we truly reach perfection in whatever he seeks to teach us. To his credit, the King is just as hard on himself as he is on us, and sees any issue with our ability to learn as much a problem on his part as it is one on ours."
"He is also incredibly knowledgeable, to the point that he is training Lady Yog-Sothoth, Lady Yag, Lady Nyarlathotep, and even Queen Azathoth herself!" exclaimed Nctosa.
Their mother psychic's presence echoed with surprise and interest at that. "Even Queen Azathoth? Truly?"
"That's right. We don't know what kind of training exactly they are doing, only that Queen Azathoth is… struggling, though apparently she is making progress." answered Nctolhu.
"Can you even speak to me about this? I don't want you to be in trouble with our King and Queen…" inquired their mother with concern, her purple tentacles shivering at the very thought.
"Don't worry, one of the first things Lord Aeon did was to explain to us what we could or could not speak of to outsiders. This doesn't count." reassured Nctosa.
"Good, that's good." psychically said their mother in relief. "And what about your own training?"
"Oh, it's as fascinating as it's exhausting!" declared Nctolhu. "Our King has a library so gigantic it may as well be its own plane! If it wasn't for the lesser Aeons serving as librarians, and the fact it's admittedly incredibly well organized, we could get lost for eons in there!"
Nctosa nodded in firm agreement. "You have to see it to believe it, mother. Endless rows of books, scrolls or digital information, as far as the eye can see! We could run for a million years and not see the far wall of the library! Someone else with even a bare fraction of the knowledge contained within that library could easily conquer thousands of galaxies with ease!"
Nctolhu shook her head in awe. "We could spend trillions of years trying to read everything, and we wouldn't even reach 1% of all that is contained within that library. It's… far beyond anything we had ever seen."
Kassogtha's tentacles trembled as she considered that. "I knew that the King valued knowledge, but to think he would hold so much of it within his realm…" she mused.
"Oh, it's not just knowledge." remarked Nctolhu. "It's also everything else."
"There are Vaults within his realms that would make the Archdevil of Greed green in jealousy from all the wealth within!" explained Nctosa. "Other Vaults contained schematics for technologies even far beyond that of anything ever imagined within the Eldritch Kingdom! Artifacts thought long lost to time, each more powerful and valuable than the last! We barely know a fraction of a fraction of what is within those Vaults, and even we have been frozen in shock at some of the things within them!"
"The Lost Scrolls of K'thu!" exclaimed her twin. "The Jewels of Markath! The Sword of Barlat! The personal journal of Al-rezif! He's got them all and more!"
Their mother's limbs froze at the names. "Didn't the Lost Scrolls of K'thu alone started no less than twenty-one wars at the mere possibility of them being found somewhere?"
"Yes." confirmed Nctosa with a smirk. "Yes they did!"
"And we actually are going to have access to some of them for our studies." declared Nctolhu. "Not yet, but our Lord made it clear that, once we're at a sufficient level, he'll allow us access to them so that we can learn from them too!"
"That's…" their mother trailed off, clearly stunned at the enormity of what exactly being the Eldritch King's student meant in practice. "How can we ever repay him for all of that?"
Those words sobered the twins, their expressions turning understanding yet determined.
"We can't. Not truly." said Nctolhu. "He's given us more than freedom, he's given us the chance to become truly great, and that… We can't ever fully repay him for that." she said softly, but with a voice full of resolve.
"But we can do our best." continued her twin. "By serving him to the best of our ability, whether as maids or…" she grinned mischievously. "More."
"My daughters… are you sure about this path?" gently questioned Kassogtha.
""We are."" answered both twins as one, their eyes glittering with pure resolve. ""We have found a God that would love us, and elevate us like no other can. That can make us happy like no other can. We would be fools to not seize our future with all our strength.""
They paused, then grinned with the kind of mischief they were most well-known for.
"And besides, our Lord is an incredible lover!" "Even with all the women he took as consorts and wives, he still is capable of satisfying them all, night after night!" "We should know, their moans and screams of bliss echo in the mansion for hours every night!" "You should see Ctthylla's face! Not a morning pass without her being as red as a red dwarf star after listening to them all go at it!"
Their mother groaned in embarrassment at their words.
"That cannot be something the King allowed you to speak about." she grumbled.
"On the contrary!" "The King is rightfully proud of his virility!" "He has definitely nothing to be ashamed of!" "Oooh, I can't wait to be the one bouncing on his dick… or his tentacles! Or both!" "Not if I do it first, sister!" "We'll see about that!"
"Girls…" Kassogtha groaned harder.
Both twins turned towards their mother with a wide grin. "And we'll gladly have you with us whenever the King wants us all, mother!"
Kassogtha somehow managed to sputter psychically at those words.
"T-That's-! Y-You can't just- That is-!"
The twins only grinned harder.
"You always loved kind men, mother!" "And the King is very kind!" "And very hot, too!" "And he's quite happy to have more lovers!" "And he's very interested in having sexy twins in his bed!" "Everyone naturally does, dear sister." "And what's even better than two sexy twins?" "Two sexy twins and their MILF of a mother!" "That's right! He can't resist us all!" "We can put collars around our necks and bind ourselves to his throne naked! "Or maybe he'd prefer mother naked with a pretty collar on her neck?" "Why not us three?" "Right! That'll work even better!" "And then we can all welcome him, and caress him after a long day working, and get on his lap to-"
"Where did you even get all those ideas?" muttered Kassogtha, despairing over the fact her twin daughters were absolute lustful demons.
They shrugged. "One of the King's lovers named Claire made a few suggestions." "So did Lady Oedon!" "And The Crawling Chaos." "And-"
"Stop! Please. I get it." exclaimed Kassogtha. "Look, I appreciate your enthusiasm, but I'm not interested right now. The King's coronation is coming up, along with the war against the allies of the Abyss, and as one of the greatest diplomats of the Eldritch Kingdom I'm swamped with work! I can't just think of romance with everything that is going on!"
The twins stared at her.
Then at each other.
Then back at her.
"Mother definitely needs to get laid, as the humans say." "Agreed, dear sister, agreed!"
"Dammit, girls! Just because he's handsome and kind and I'm eternally grateful for all his help and apparently good enough to successfully maintain several relationships at the same time and satisfy those women both sexually and otherwise doesn't mean that I'm interested in him!" Kassogtha cried out in frustration.
The twins stared at her.
"... Oh wow, mother's got it bad." "Really bad." "At this rate, she might actually bounce on the King's dick before us!" "... Do you think he'd ask us to eat his seed out of mother's sex?" "On second thought, maybe she should get his dick first…"
Kassogtha's ensuing scream of frustrated embarrassment only made the twins grin harder.
Milky Way galaxy, Earth, Haiti.
Amala, the First Queen of Humanity, happily took a sip of her cocktail before letting out a blissful sigh, her body spread out on the beach towel upon the soft, warm sand of the beach she was on, her green eyes taking in the sight of the perfectly blue sea extending in the distance before her with a soft smile.
It has been far, far too long since she had been able to enjoy the feeling of the sun's warmth on her skin, of swimming in the sea, or simply enjoying a drink.
Millenia upon millenia, spent loyally serving the Goddess who saved her people from plague while turning her into a living statue. She had to admit, even while she had never regretted taking the deal, being able to feel again, to be human again was a true dream come true.
For that alone she would loyally serve King Aeon as she had served Lady Rani, though admittedly so far that had mostly involved catching up on modern human civilization and technologies, which had progressed so far beyond anything she could have dreamt of in her time as queen that it was awe-inspiring to see.
Even if, truthfully, the internet was used more for porn than anything else. It figures that Humanity would use their greatest achievement, a world-wide network of information, for such a limited purpose.
Ah well. Thankfully it wasn't just all porn, even if it truly felt that way sometimes when she delved even slightly into the deeper part of the Internet.
At least back in her time those who gave money to women actually got to have sex with them…
She shook her head. What truly interested her was all that she could learn of the knowledge gathered by humanity, in order to be able to blend in with it. Especially since…
"I suppose that there is some value to lazing about like this, though I still prefer spending time in my libraries."
Amala turned to look at her companion, the Pleroma of Knowledge and Ignorance, Sydnotra, her own body spread out on her own beach towel.
The creation of her new Lord had been sent by him to help teach her everything he felt that she needed to know to serve him, which was… quite extensive.
Quite clearly, her new King wanted her to be able to perfectly fit in within Human society, now that she could actually appear human. A new set of identity had even been given to her, making her a new citizen of the "United States of America."
"Come on, I refuse to believe that you can't even enjoy this a little! Surely Aeon didn't create you into a complete workaholic!" complained her other teacher, the Goddess known as Lucy Miller, who too was enjoying the warm sun and equally warm sea.
All three women had spent the last few months working together, though mostly it was Amala learning all that she could from both of her teachers.
Still, they had been valuable fonts of knowledge about her new Lord, each in their own way.
"I resent that accusation. I am perfectly capable of relaxing if I want to. I simply believe that I have more useful and enjoyable things to do than caring about whether or not my skin, when I take human form, is tanned or not." replied Sydnotra.
Lucy groaned. "First Amala is way too serious about serving Aeon to the point that she has thrown herself into her studies like a madwoman, and on top of that you are encouraging her! Relax! Enjoy the sun! Go and swim in the warm sea! Don't work all the time!"
"I enjoy learning how far humanity has grown." said Amala. "Their achievements are far beyond anything we could have dreamt of in my time."
She smiled. "Furthermore, I swore that I would serve Lord Aeon faithfully, and that oath holds even more true after he kindly turned me back into a human. He did not have to do so, but did it anyway. I owe him a debt that I will do everything in my power to repay."
"I fully approve of your loyalty to father." calmly stated Sydnotra.
"Of course you would." sighed Lucy. "But I mean it when I said that you both need to learn to live for yourselves, too. It's not healthy to focus your entire life on the approval of a single person, no matter who that person might be."
"I was created with a purpose. It is one I am proud of. I do not require more." declared Sydnotra.
"And I have sworn loyalty to King Aeon. My honor, combined with the miracle he granted me, requires me to faithfully devote myself to him in whatever way I can please him." calmly continued Amala.
Lucy snorted. "You make it sound like you would have sex with him if he asked."
"I would, gladly at that." she replied.
Lucy choked.
"Wait, what? You've met him less than five minutes!" she exclaimed.
Amala shrugged. "I said it before, I'll say it again: I have sworn loyalty, and will honor my oath in every way King Aeon desires. I gave my body and soul to Lady Rani when I made the deal that saved my people, spending 7 000 years as a living statue unable to breath, eat, drink or anything else humans take for granted. I never regretted it. If, now that I have my human body back, King Aeon wants me to serve him sexually with it, it is his right to do so. He is the master of all that I am, after all"
Lucy scowled. "That sounds like slavery to me."
Amala shook her head. "It is devotion. To swear yourself to a Ruler is to be willing to sacrifice everything for that Ruler's sake. To do any less would be to break the oath sworn."
Her expression hardened. "And I am no oath-breaker."
"You see her through the eyes of a modern woman, Lucy." remarked Sydnotra. "She is not. She is ancient by human reckoning of such things. In her time, oaths were deadly serious things, especially to a King, and even more so to a god. Oath-breakers were viciously punished, if not executed outright."
"They were." Amala said firmly. "I made the laws myself. Anyone willing to break an oath given, unless they had very good reasons for it, proved themselves unworthy of trust. At a time where communities needed to rely on each other for survival, to allow liars and deceivers to live was folly."
Amala glanced at Lucy. "And it's hardly like you haven't given yourself to King Aeon, already."
Lucy opened her mouth, paused, then closed it, a frown on her face.
"It's different." She disagreed. "I owe him… a lot, but at the end of the day I choose to get romantically and sexually involved with him because I came to love him, not because I felt duty-bound to do so."
Amala was about to argue back, when a portal suddenly appeared, showing King Aeon and one of the Goddesses she remembered being present the day she met him walking towards them.
Amala immediately moved to kneel, Sydnotra getting up and bowing instead… while Lucy just waved before closing her eyes and basking in the hot tropical sun.
King Aeon sent an amused look at his wife, showing that he didn't mind the lack of proper recognition that he was owed as the King and master of his Household, though Amara recognized that such things weren't common anymore.
Then he smiled at both Amara and Sydnotra, waving a hand to let them rise and relax.
"At ease, you two. This place is hardly appropriate for anything but relaxation." he remarked with a grin.
"My Lord. Does your presence here mean that you have need of me?" Amala inquired, rather eager to finally get to work properly. As incredibly enjoyable as having a human body again was, along with the time and opportunity to enjoy it in this beautiful island, she really didn't feel right not working to pay back the debt of gratitude she owed her new King.
Thankfully, King Aeon nodded at her words.
"I will soon be claiming my Throne. A lot of work will be ahead of me after that, and I would like to request your help on one particular matter that I believe that you can help with." he told her, and while she appreciated the way he phrased it as a request she was more than happy to obey any order given.
"What can I do to help?" she inquired.
He smiled, and Amala couldn't help but be struck by how handsome he was. She had seen countless men, mortals and divine in her life, but none could quite match her new King in terms of looks. It was no wonder that her King had a number of consorts with looks like that, women in her time would have gladly given themselves to him just for the chance of making love to a man as perfect as him.
Then he spoke again, and Amala instantly refocused, carefully listening to his words to make sure that she would properly carry out his will.
"This is Kassogtha. I believe that you might remember her from when we first met?"
Amala glanced at the purple haired, golden-eyed goddess and bowed respectfully. "I do. It is an honor to meet you again, my Lady."
The goddess smiled. "Well, we're going to be working together for a while from now on."
"Ah, it's about the pantheons of Earth, isn't it?" suddenly said Sydnotra.
"That's right." King Aeon favored his daughter with a bright smile before looking back at Amala. "Some time after my rise to the Throne, I intend to have a meeting with every pantheon of Earth. Your duty is to help Kassogtha, and possibly Nyarlathotep if she requests your aid, in setting up this meeting of the Gods. Things on Earth are going to change, and I need everyone prepared for it."
He paused, then continued, his expression more thoughtful. "Also, if you have the free time there are a numbers of other diplomatic matters on Earth that you could look into in my name from time to time, like with the spiders of Ftagxurshagaalg'ak and the subterraneans of Tthiaftlsu'ftaftugh. Though those are secondary matters as they will likely need more time to fully get moving and come to a decision."
Amala bowed deeply. "It is my honor to serve you, my King." she answered, though she was thankful for Sydnotra for teaching her about both of those people and species.
Which, in hindsight, was probably no coincidence at all.
He smiled again, and she noticed the way it lit up his whole face, the warm approval that came from him, something that she had seen many people try to achieve with but a smile and yet, no one managed to reach his level. It was a smile so earnestly happy, approving and warm that whoever it was directed to would naturally feel uplifted and proud of earning it.
Amala wondered if he was naturally so gifted in charisma, or if he had to train to become this good. Either way, as a former queen, she could respect the talent on display.
"Well, I look forward to seeing you at work. As for after the meeting with the Gods is done, I'm still considering which path would be best for you. On the one hand, you could become a full-time diplomat working with Kass-" he nodded at the purple-haired goddess "and the Crawling Chaos… Or instead you could help me build up my wealth and influence by becoming a businesswoman, and over time handle more and more of my portfolio amongst the cosmos." he nodded at Lucy at those words.
The blonde goddess turned towards Amala with a pleading look. "Please go with the second, I'm begging you. I'm the one stuck dealing with being a CEO of his companies, and I swear that if I have to deal with one more greedy asshole looking down my cleavage while trying to rob me blind through bullshit business deals I'm gonna snap."
Amala blinked, glancing towards her King to see his reaction at those words, only to find him yet again looking more amused than anything else.
"Come on Lucy, it's her future we're talking about, you can't just decide it for her." gently rebuked the King.
The blonde goddess actually pouted at that.
"Fine. But seriously, you know my focus is on technologies, sciences and the likes. Not on finances, no matter how good at it I am." she grumbled.
"My King." Amala spoke up, voice firm. "May I ask which of the two options would be the most useful to you?"
King Aeon sent her a look, frowning slightly. "Amala, it's your future, it shouldn't be up to me to decide."
"And it is my decision to go where you need me most." firmly replied Amala.
They stared at each other, Amala refusing to back down on this. A servant she may be, but she was still once a warrior-queen, and she remained perfectly skilled at the first in spite of her previous condition. She would not bow from a fight she believed worth fighting unless she had no other choice.
King Aeon must have seen the same, because he sighed deeply and answered.
"The second. I have more potential diplomats than loyal businessmen or women right now." he told her.
Amala allowed herself a slight satisfied smile on her lips, her green eyes glinting with resolve.
"Then that is the way I want to go." she declared without hesitation.
King Aeon frowned. "Are you certain? You can always change your mind later, but even so…"
"I am." she said firmly.
"... Very well then. In that case…" he muttered, extending a hand and summoning a glass vial of… some kind of black liquid that nonetheless glowed in his palm.
Whatever it was, it felt powerful, and everyone around them stiffened at the sight.
"Aeon's, that's-!" gaped Lucy, with Lady Kassogtha looking downright stunned.
The only one looking less surprised was Sydnotra, who unseen by everyone but Aeon had a suddenly cold, calculating look on her face before she nodded approvingly.
King Aeon merely smiled, though while that smile was still warm, there was a certain measure of mischief in it.
"As one of my personal followers, you deserve to have some Old Blood of your own. Though in this case, I also added something… more." he declared mischievously.
"What is it?" Amala inquired. The liquid was… She had no words for it. It looked strange, powerful, and there was something… more to it than in anything else she had ever seen.
"Do a good job, and I'll tell you." Her King swore, still looking amused but with enough underlying seriousness to make it clear this really was important.
"Aeon… Are you sure about this?" asked Lady Kassogtha, her golden eyes still staring wide-eyed at the liquid.
"I am." he calmly replied. "And if she proves herself, she'll have more than earned this." he said firmly, with the commanding authority of a King.
Nobody else said anything, leaving Amala to square her shoulders and step forward, carefully and respectfully taking the vial of the strange, powerful liquid in her hands.
She had no idea what it was, but just from the look on the faces of Lady Lucy, Sydnotra and Kassogtha it was something incredibly important.
"Drink it." said King Aeon, his cosmic eyes staring at her with an intensity that clearly marked the importance of this moment. "And take your first step on a new journey that will go far beyond anything you can imagine right now."
Amala stared at him, then at the vial.
7000 years ago, she made a deal for the sake of her people that she never regretted taking, no matter its cost.
Today, she chose to do so again, this time in the name of honor and loyalty.
She looked back up into the King' eyes… and then brought the vial to her lips and drank.
Her eyes bulged at the taste, far superior to anything she had ever, ever eaten or drank before-
And then pure warmth flooded her body, her mind filling with starlight.
The last thing she heard before passing out as pure power filled her being was a warm chuckle from the King.
"Embrace Eternity, Amala, the First Queen. We shall walk it together."
And deep within her soul… a spark of Divinity was born.
OPM world, City A.
"It's been some time since we've all been gathered together."
I chuckled at Leon's words, even as more than one person gathered around the table of the bar we were in nodded in agreement at his words.
"I'm going to take my throne soon." I replied. "So before I lose myself completely in the literal cosmic-sized amount of work ahead of me, I figured we could have a guys' night out."
I looked around at everyone gathered today. Leon and Chris were side by side, the two men still being amongst the only ones with children nowadays.
Agent HUNK, for once without his military equipment, had an apathetic expression on his face, but I knew him well enough that he had come to enjoy these little get-togethers.
Alex Mercer had his arms crossed over his chest and a bored look on his face, but notably had never missed a single one of these gatherings of "us boys" since I started them.
Bang and Bomb, my old martial art masters turned youthful again, were grinning at me proudly. Not surprising, considering that one of their students was about to fully become the ruler of all Reality.
Finally, Saitama and Genos took up the last two seats, Saitama looking as bored as ever, and Genos being ready to write any words of wisdom Saitama might say tonight at a moment's notice.
Of course, Genos's presence meant that we needed to do this little gathering in Saitama's world, as Prime Earth was still under the masquerade and a cyborg walking around would draw… a lot of attention.
"I'll take the chance to congratulate you once again on becoming God-King. I must admit, even after everything, I could have never imagined that you would become such." admitted Bang.
"I don't think any of us did, not even this guy." remarked Leon, raising a drink in mock salute towards me.
"I didn't, no." I grinned. "Life can still find ways to surprise even me, though I'm not complaining."
"I imagine not." Alex said with a snort. "From what I heard, not only did you gain inimaginable influence upon all of Reality, but more than a few women have found their way into your bed… with more to come."
I shrugged. "Seduction turned out to be a far greater weapon that even I could have imagined. And I'm never one to not enjoy life to the fullest."
"Cosmic peace through sex and seduction." mused Bomb. "And here I thought I had seen everything."
"If anyone could pull it off, it's this guy." remarked Chris, pointing at me with a smirk. "He even got my sister wrapped around his fingers, and trust me when I say that is a feat worthy of the divine."
I laughed. "You're lucky Claire isn't here to hear you say that, or you'd be in for an ass-kicking worthy of legends."
Chris shuddered dramatically. "Please don't tell her, she might actually kill me since she knows I'd just come back anyway."
"Don't worry. You know the rule: What happens during men's night out stay in the night." I told him with amusement, especially when Chris sighed in relief at my words.
"Speaking of women, is Sherry still trying to convince you to go for the Harem ending?" asked Leon towards Saitama.
"Yes." he deadpanned. "And I'm still not sure what to think about that."
"You know what I told you." I shrugged. "It's working out for me quite well."
"I'm sure that you could find women as beautiful and incredible as Sherry if you wanted to, Sensei!" locally remarked Genos.
Saitama glanced at him. "And what about you? Aren't you satisfied with Fubuki?"
Genos hesitated. He and Fubuki had a much better first encounter than in canon, and with Fubuki hanging out with me and Saitama a lot, things eventually led to those two spending more and more time together.
Funnily, if Genos was the perfect supporter of Saitama, Fubuki was somewhat similar towards Tatsumaki.
Incredible what my actions in making Tatsumaki a better person and healing her relationship with her sister led to.
"We are happy together, but Fubuki isn't entirely against me taking more lovers, mostly because-" his gaze flickered towards me. "It's been working out for her sister."
I snorted. "Those two are more alike than they think."
"And what about you two?" asked Leon towards Bang and Bomb. "I'm sure that there has to be at least some women who caught your gaze… and vice-versa."
The two brothers glanced at each other.
"We did enjoy our new youth, but after decades of being alone, the idea of actually being in a relationship feels… strange." revealed Bomb.
Bang nodded. "Maybe one day we might go for it, but it won't be right now."
He smiled. "I heard some fascinating things about the martial arts of the Prime Multiverse. I'm going on a sort of pilgrimage with my brother to experience it all, or at least as much as we possibly can for at least a few decades."
"Trust the martial arts masters to focus on martial arts." joked Saitama.
The two brothers laughed.
"And what about you, HUNK?" I asked the silent man. "Any thoughts of romance in the future?"
HUNK, as he preferred to be called, stared at me blankly.
"No." he said flatly.
Chris snorted. "Every time you ask that question, and every time it's the same song and dance."
I rolled my eyes. "He's a grown-ass man, he's got to think about something more than just how to best kill whatever he'll encounter in his next mission. He's got to live a little! Go see a movie! Go on a date! Do something stupid and silly that'll make him laugh in hindsight! Something!"
HUNK kept staring at me blankly. "No."
I groaned.
"Aeon's not wrong, though. Even I still read manga or watched anime when I trained to become a hero." commented Saitama. "If all you know how to do and be is to be a killer, then can you even call yourself human anymore?"
Genos began furiously scribbling on his notebook, muttering frantically to himself.
Well used to his antics, nobody at the table blinked an eye.
"I am what the missions I am given require me to be. Nothing more or less." HUNK said bluntly.
I held back a sigh. Of course, if I wanted to, I could actually order him to try and live a little, and he'd actually obey me…
But I respected him enough to not do that, and we both knew it.
Thus, this endless loop of me asking him to relax and him telling me no was our way of showing I cared for him as more than a mindless tool, and his answer a way of showing that he was perfectly happy and satisfied serving me.
Still, I also knew that my constant badgering about doing more than being a tool of death had actually succeeded already.
Turns out, HUNK had something of a green thumb…
Though I respected his privacy enough to not say anything about what he actually got up to in private.
"Fine, be that way." I grumbled, before grinning and looking at Alex, who tensed at the sight of my grin.
Smart man, but it was already too late!
"Besides, our second eternal loner is actually going to get himself a girlfriend!" I gleefully declared.
"What?!"
"No way!"
"Impossible!"
"It's a miracle! Quick, check if the sky is falling!"
"Oh fuck off!" Alex shouted. "It's not like that!"
"Bullshit!" I called out. "Yidhra's head over heels for you and we both know it!"
"Oohohoh! Our second loner isn't going to stay alone anymore!"
"The savior of Manhattan has finally found a woman fit for him!"
"At last! The heart of ice of Alex Mercer has been warmed by love! I'm gonna cry!" dramatically said Chris, swooning in his chair, to much laughter.
Alex growled like an animal, his face flushing with embarrassment.
"We just get each other, okay?" he grumbled. "She didn't have an easy life, and the things that trouble her are ones I understand all too well."
"I know." I said gently, becoming more serious in the face of a topic that deserved to be treated seriously. "You both suffered because of your nature, and were left with questions that had no easy answers. That's why I wanted you two to meet, because it's easier to find the answers we seek when you're with someone who truly understands you."
Alex grumbled under his breath at my words, but notably didn't protest, and everyone else became more serious too.
"Come on, Alex. If the two of you truly are happy together, it's not something that you should hesitate about." gently said Bang.
"My brother is right." agreed Bomb. "Love is a wonderful thing. That woman, Yidhra was it? If she makes you happy and vice-versa, then you should hold onto that happiness with both hands. I don't think I need to tell you of all people that life can be cruel sometimes."
Alex pursed his lips. "It's not that simple. She's got issues, and going too fast would only hurt her. Even I don't know how deep those issues go, but…" he glanced at me.
I grimaced, before looking at him in the eyes.
"They run deep indeed." I said softly. "But you can heal her wounds, and all that you need to do is be supportive. When she is ready, she will share with you her deepest fear, and when that day comes, remember that actions say a lot about someone… and show her that her fears are entirely baseless, because she made her choices long, long ago already."
Alex stared at me for a moment, then nodded, clearly grateful for the advice.
"Thanks." he said gruffly, which was the equivalent of a massive show of gratitude coming from him.
"Still." I grinned at him. "A hot Eldritch goddess for a first girlfriend and wife? Damn Alex, I'm so proud of you!"
"Wait, Alex's lover is a full-blown Eldritch goddess?!" exclaimed Bang, along with other similar exclamations for those not in the know.
"Yep!" I said cheerfully, ignoring the way Alex had gone right back to glaring bloody murder at me. "Our dear shut-in of a loner has gotten his claws into the heart of a full-blown sexy and hot Eldritch Goddess! What a Chad move!"
"Aeon!" Alex growled, while the others began shouting congratulations while laughing.
"What?" I said innocently. "As someone who did the same, I'm just recognizing the achievement for what it is!"
He groaned. "Why am I here again?"
"Just to suffer!" I laughed.
"Don't throw memes at me you bastard! It's all your fault!" he hissed.
"Yes indeed, I have wrought two lonely, hurt souls together and brought them both happiness and newfound peace by doing so! Curse me, for I am clearly the most malevolent god in existence, mwahahaha!" I cackled dramatically-
BONK!*
"Ow!"
I rubbed my head, glaring at a grinning Saitama.
"What was that for?" I grumbled.
"You were cackling evilly. Remember the rules: if you start cackling, we reserve the right to bonk you on the head for it." he said smugly.
I snorted. "Smartass."
"I see nothing wrong with this!" cheerfully declared Alex, clearly enjoying my predicament.
"I'm a god-king! I shouldn't get bonked on the head!" I whined dramatically.
Saitama raised a fist. "These fists are omniversal and egalitarian." he said flatly, the twitching of his lips the only signs he was absolutely messing with me.
Genos, naturally, promptly started frantically writing in his notebook, while everyone else laughed.
I pouted. "Not even crowned King yet and already my own people are insubordinate! Oh woe is me, for there is no respect left in this reality!"
"I'm American, and I don't remember voting for you." Alex shot back with a smirk.
""Hear hear!"" Chris and Leon raised their drinks in agreement, similar smirks on their faces as they teased me.
HUNK glanced at them… Then took his glass and raised it too, a very subtle smirk on his lips.
"Et tu, HUNK?" I cried out, staring at him with pure betrayal in my eyes. "Have I truly been forsaken by all?!"
"Ah! Your reign hasn't even truly begun and already your most loyal followers are betraying you!" laughed Leon.
"Score one for Liberty!" gleefully declared that traitor Chris, raising his drink in celebration before taking a deep swing of it.
"It appears that civil war is inevitable, Master." remarked Genos with amusement. "On which side should we stand?"
Saitama looked at me with clear laughter in his eyes.
"The one fighting him, of course! It's where the best battle is going to be!" Saitama said cheerfully.
"My own daughter is with you, you traitor!" I shouted while pointing at him dramatically.
"Children are meant to surpass their parents, didn't you know?" Saitama shot back.
My eyes narrowed. "There will be a rockening most foul for this." I swore.
"It will have to wait, because the next round of drinks is here." remarked Bang with a grin as he saw a waitress come closer with a number of bottles.
I grunted. "Fine. A temporary truce it is."
We all happily welcomed the waitress, gave her a larger tip that she must have ever seen considering the look on her face when I started bringing the cash, before Alex looked back at me when she left.
"So, your coronation is soon, right?" he asked.
I nodded. "There's a few things to take care of first, but yeah. It's about time, it's been months since Azathoth and I met. I'm looking forward to it, partially because I'm about to become king for goodness' sake, but also because after that I'm finally going to go back to Yharnam."
"It's been a long time coming for you, huh?" mused Chris.
I snorted. "Like you wouldn't believe. It's been so many years, and yet, I can still remember it all like it was yesterday…"
I trailed off, the memories of the Long Night of the Hunt flashing through my mind.
"I had to wait so long for me to truly feel ready to go back and make things right…" I told them. "But here it finally is. Time for me to write the final page of my time in Yharnam, and with that, be finally free to fully look forward to the future without anything holding me back."
My friends stared at me, before Chris raised his glass high.
"To making peace with the past, and facing the future without fear." He declared firmly, and we all smiled and raised our drinks.
"""Cheers!"""
A.N: Alright! Here is the next chapter in which we continue the events of Love Azathoth!
A chapter mostly dedicated to moving forward with some of the character plotlines', though I also finally brought back The Boys! It's been a while since we had a scene focused on Aeon and male characters, and I decided that it was a good moment to have one.
Not much more to say, the romance for Kassogtha and her twin is slowly but surely moving forward, and as for Amala, well I'd like to point out that Aeon doesn't have an Eldritch god(dess) of Commerce and the Economy yet, and here we have a character that the Love Azathoth CYOA specifically remark as capable of single-handedly creating a business empire if she has the opportunity.
In other News, Lucy Miller was found partying like never before while shouting "I'm no longer the CEO!" over and over again.
The ensuing sex that night made even her gain a limp for the rest of the day. She had no regrets.
Still, with all that being said, I hope you all enjoyed this update! Next time, Aeon meets the Devil in a bar! And the First Woman! And their daughter…? A joke in the making with a deadly punchline for someone!