Taken to the Deadlands: Tales of the Stolen Demon Brides

Chapter 3 - Aris

I loathed the auctions.

I hated the smell of lingering fear and arousal. I hated having to interact with the demons that were invited. And most importantly, I hated seeing the demons tear apart humans without a second thought.

It had been almost a millennia since I stopped feasting on humans. Since the fear that they exuded left a scar on my psyche.

Back then I was a young demon, looking to regain the power to protect what I cared about. But when that was taken from me, the pain of going through these auctions never seemed worth it.

"Aris, what the hell are you doing here?" A grating, yet familiar voice called.

I stiffened in my seat. I had made sure to get the one closest to the back and in the shadows somewhat, just so no one would come up to me.

Apparently no one got the message.

I gritted my teeth and looked to the intruder—or intruders was more like it.

Two twin girls stood off to the side. One stood tall, with her hands shoved in her suit pants. Her button up was loose and over top of it she wore a suit jacket that had the royal coat of arms embroidered on it.

Her twin lopped her arm around her neck, lying her chin on the others' shoulder, and looked at me with a devilish smirk. Both of them had a messy type of mullet that was died a light reddish pink. Or at least I thought it was died, no member of the royal family had that monstrosity of a hair color.

Maybe it was blood stained. That would be more on brand for them.

Small, delicately filed horn peeked from beneath their hair. Another sign of their heritage. Demons like myself and many others didn't have the resources, or care to constantly file down their horns. But for royalty, it was a must.

Everything about them had to be groomed for presentation to the inner courts. Everything from their clothes, to what they ate, to even the woman they fucked.

How they got away with half of what they did was beyond me.

Last I saw them they were being taken in for punishment after positioning the royal families food supply. For anyone else it would have been a beheading for even attempting to kill a royal. They succeeded in killing three of their relatives before being taken in.

But even as demons gathered from all across the realms to see their punishment... they walked out to greet us without so much as a hair out of place.

Even I had to be a little impressed with how they managed to get off.

Against my inner wants, I stood and bowed my head to them.

"Eros, Oros."

"Oh knock it off, Aris," Eros said. She was the one in front and usually the one that did the talking. Oros on the other hand... let's just say she liked to play more than she liked to talk. If Oros was talking, trouble was expected.

I gave her a forced smile.

"I, too, am bound by the rules, Eros," I said. "No matter how long we've known each other."

Oros turned around and motioned for the human worker to get the a chair. The man was seemed to be young, at least in his twenties, and while he looked well fed, the terror of witnessing this auction had left his cheeks hallowed and eyes dead.

I sat down with them when their seats were brought over.

"Answer the question," Oros demanded as soon as she sat down.