Page 9

8

QUEEN ELOWEN

I stood beside Draxus in the throne room, the area cast in candlelight from the massive skull chandelier hanging from the ceiling, and bone sconces lining the walls.

The lava lines in the black stone walls flared and dimmed, the shadows stretching long and deep, snaking out and curling around everything it touched like demons reaching out to claim a victim.

Right now it was just Draxus and I in the room, with servants stationed around the room in wait of who was coming.

My heart thundered, and my body pleasantly ached, Draxus’s cum seeping out of my pussy reminding me rather vividly what we just did and will do again. And again. My cream mixed with the cum dripping from my folds. Draxus growled periodically, his hand moving down my back, over my ass, and sliding it between my thighs to push his seed back into me.

I stood at the top of the dais, the jagged throne of skulls and black stone behind me, intimating and ominous. And then I heard them. Draxus stiffened beside me, massive and unmoving, his gaze fixed on the doors that hadn’t opened yet. His tail was swishing back and forth, the tension radiating out of him.

The air was thick with heat and power and something else that made the hair on my arms stand on end. That heavy feeling clung to my skin like sweat, and with every passing second, I felt that weird feeling weigh heavier on me.

“You look every bit of my queen, Elowen.”

The pride that filled me from his praise was instant.

I heard heavy footsteps on the other side of the throne room doors, and looked down at the grown Draxus gave me for this evening to keep my focus clear.

The dress was black, with an overlay of black lace and silk, and delicate glowing threads throughout it like the lava that surrounded us. I stared at the mark on my wrist, the branding glowing faintly on my flesh. Draxus said when we were together the mark would be brighter, feel hotter.

The crown sat heavy atop my head, a reminder that I held the power.

Draxus curled his hand around my waist, pulling me close to him just as the doors opened and our guests ended. “They will see you, and they will kneel before you, showing their respect.”

“And those who won’t kneel?”

He chuckled. “The ones who feel brave… we’ll bathe in their blood.”

The first to enter was a hulking beast draped in blood red robes. I couldn’t see much because of his hooded cape, but I could see wicked looking hairy antlers that curved outward from the material and arched inches above its head.

He lumbered forward on hooved feet, that marrow clacking on the black stone floor.

He was introduced as a Lord Velgrack, one that resided in the skeleton forest.

Without having to be told, the lord knelt, bowing to us and showing respect without having said a word.

I swallowed in trepidation, the situation, at how terrifying this was, but didn’t let my expression change.

More entered, each one more monstrous and beastly than the next.

A serpent-bodied female slithered in next, undulating across the floor, totally nude aside from the crown on her head and a transparent cloak over her body.

When she stopped in front of us, she slowly smiled, jewels in her fangs, her silted eyes trained right on me.

“My Queen,” she said and bowed, her words slurring slightly because of her forked tongue.

A couple came in next—the first pair I’d seen so far—and I was shocked to see a beastly lord with a tiny human woman close to his side. The way he held her possessively told me whoever this female was, she meant something special to him.

I wanted to talk to the woman, to hear her story, but right now I had to play this part. If this was going to be my life now, I had to try .

The room filled with beings, but then there was this heavy silence that suddenly filled the space.

A massively built humanoid male with pale gray skin covered in distressed leather came into the hall. People parted for him as he came to a stop in front of us.

His black eyes gleamed with a clear hatred as he stared at Draxus. Long black hair fell down his back, plaits on either side of his temples, and pieces of clear spine weaved between them.

This male didn’t bow. He didn’t speak. He just glared at Draxus before moving his slimy gaze to me. That had Draxus growling and pulling me closer and slightly behind his back in a protective manner.

And then the beast grinned at me, his humanoid face terrifying me. I realized that although Draxus didn’t resemble a human at all, I found him handsome in a savage and brutal way.

“Pretty new queen,” the monster growled at me.

Before I knew what was happening, Draxus roared and launched himself from the dais, slamming his big body into the creature.

The males crashed onto the floor with enough force the stone cracked under the onslaught.

The other guests stayed silent, but retreated, giving the fighters room. I covered my mouth with a hand, watching the brutality of what was happening. A part of me wanted to try and stop it, but common sense said I’d only end up getting hurt, or worse.

I was a mere human that would get crushed.

“You dare talk to the Queen in such a way. A way?” Draxus growled and bit the other male in the throat, black blood gushing out. Draxus was pushed off, but he was right back on the other male, using his barbed tail to slam into the creature repeatedly.

The other male bared sharp teeth but then chuckled, “I just took note she is a pretty little thing.”

Gasps echoed through the chamber, and I realized these creatures, these guests, were appalled that anyone was speaking to Draxus–their king–in such a way.

With a roar that shook the walls, Draxus lunged again, this time slamming into the other male, taking him back to the floor hard enough that shards of stone cracked around them. The creature beneath him writhed, black blood pouring from several cuts, bites, and open wounds.

Draxus reared back and drove a fist into his jaw. The room vibrated with his rage. And then he lifted the barbed tip of his tail, poised to strike, but this time aimed for the creature’s heart.

“Draxus,” I said, my voice steady despite the shaking in my bones. “Please,” it’s all I said. I didn’t want to see anymore, didn’t want to witness any death. My king… my mate froze.

The chamber went still.

He turned his head slowly and looked at me, his chest heaving, his claws, and face bloodstained. The male beneath him was alive, but unmoving. I finally stepped forward, my heart pounding.

“No more,” I whispered and reached for his hand, not caring that it was covered in blood.

Draxus looked back at the male beneath him and bared his teeth, nostrils flaring,. I knew he was having a hard time stopping himself. Draxus took a step back and I knew it was hard as hell for him to do. The other male coughed, rolled to his side, and dragged himself back with the little dignity he had left.

Draxus stood tall once more, looming over the room like the god of death himself.

I moved to his side, the train of my dark gown dragging through a puddle of blood I didn’t flinch to step through. No one moved. No one spoke.

Then, slowly, one by one… they knelt… for me and Draxus.

Draxus turned to me, and in that moment, I saw something in his eyes I hadn’t before—not just pride. Not just deep and dark need. Devotion.

He stepped before me, his towering form shadowing mine, his voice low in my ear as he said, “You’ve never been more beautiful than you are now… taming your beast.”

This kingdom was no longer just his. It was ours .