Kinera, Platinum Duchess of the Horned Crown, Conqueror of Avandale, and Sovereign of the Sixth Realm was on her way to pick up a present. She was unaccompanied because the gift was for her bodyguard. The demoness strode though the teeming throng of the Bazaar like a blur of electricity and twilight. Even though she stood shorter than many around her, the crowds parted for her without question at the sound of her scaled feet against stone.
The Demon Mage of The Mirrored Keep finally stopped at a stall which was nestled at the end of a narrow alleyway. Its counter, covered in jewelry, stood even with the deep, electric blue flesh of her wide hips. Jewels of all hues, wrapped in spun metal, also hung from the wood frame. She tucked a lose lock of her pale, purple hair behind a pointed, ring studded ear and appeared to peruse the offerings. After a few moments, she looked up. "You there, craftsman, your finest wares."
The craftsman in question was a vast, pig-faced man, who filled the opening to his stall as he turned to face her. He winked and produced a box from one of his many pouches. "Keep yer calm, demon wench, I have work to finish first."
"No, we shall conduct business now," Kinera commanded to hide her grin. She straightened every fiber of her five foot frame and crossed her arms in a display of regal poise. Blue faded to red around her elbows as many tiny scales formed elegant gauntlets the color of the setting sun. Similar scales clad her legs from her calves to her toes. Taken together, it gave her the appearance of always being at arms. Her natural armor was rumored to be harder than any steel, but mysteriously soft to the touch.
He spat and slammed the box on the counter. "This," he began with a flourish, "is a gem I obtained at great cost from a traveler many Realms removed from ours and I can take no less than nine Crowns for it."
Passerby on the main street had slowed to watch the exchange. While heated haggling was commonplace, it was not often that a demoness patronized this areaβespecially one of noble birth, as her forward curved, crown-like horns suggested. They, along with a short pair which branched off to point straight up, rose from behind her pointed ears. The white bone was inlaid with platinum that seemed to flicker and ripple like water.
The demoness' almond shaped eyes, half closed as she feigned boredom, were pools of darkness with rings of brilliant, glowing fuchsia floating within. They were framed by gently pulsing lines of a matching hue on her brow and cheeks that swept back and then down her neck. Lush lips, so black it felt as if they were stealing the light around them, were twisted into an expression of amusement as she made a counter offer of one Crown, because surely some bauble, regardless of origin, was not worth nine.
"You wound me, my lady!" The pig-faced shopkeep exclaimed, pretending to grasp at a dagger in his shoulder. "I have mouths to fill and backs to clothe. Surely you, clad in such finery, can spare a humble man eight crowns?"
Her clothes were indeed of a different quality from those around her, which added to the claim her appearance made for her. Intricate spiral patterns spread over her loose top of pale silk, which shimmered as its off-the-shoulder collar fluttered in the hot desert breeze. Beneath the shirt, she wore a tightly laced bodice, its iridescent fabric a color that matched her eyes.
A wide belt of twisted black velvet hugged her waist, further accentuating her flared hips and ample butt. In the front, the belt's bottom edge plunged between her thick, muscled thighs. The wide strip of cloth was covered with the intricate silver embroidery of several powerful wards. Rings and cuffs hugged her tapered tail as it draped over her butt to end mid-calf in a broad, heart-shaped tip. It, too, sprouted russet scales from its midpoint to the rounded tip.
"I could be convinced the trinket is worth three Crowns," she said with a dismissive wave that let her take in the growing crowd. They had drawn quite the audience and it was time to send them on their way.
"Three? Girl, you try my patience. Seven."
"Girl?!" The air around Kinera flickered with faint purple flame as her horns began to glow. The lines on her face flared brighter, as others etched themselves on her bare arms and legs. "Do you know who I am, you fat swine?"
Around them, the crowd melted at once. No one wanted to be near what was looking like a deal going south, especially one that could have significant collateral damage. The corridor empty, Kinera began to laugh, the air of hostility dispelled in an instant.
"It's done! I'm so excited!" She said, clapping her hands. "Lovely doing business with you as always, Jiek."
She enveloped the portly pig-man's hand with her tail tip to shake on the deal and turned to open her purse. She fetched out nine Crowns from her hip bag and passed them over, taking care not to touch his hand with her exposed, brilliant blue finger tips. She had just started a shed and didn't want her unchecked power to harm her favorite artisan.
The shopkeep knocked one of the coins against his tusk, more from habit than actual distrust, before nodding and dropping the lot into his own bag. With a bow, he handed the purple-haired demoness the necklace she had requested he craft a fortnight past. A rough leather strap was looped through a starkly contrasting ornate ring of braided platinum. The silver wire wrap glinted in the hot bazaar sun. Contained within the network of fine wire was an egg-sized sapphire polyhedron. Its blue was so deep that looking at it almost felt like falling into an ocean.
She held it up, letting the world go fuzzy so that she could see the enchantment surrounding the gem. Her breath began to quicken as she realized it was perfectly up to specification. This evening was going to be memorable indeed.
"I know this you live for these spells, your grace," Jiek said as he watched others in the bazaar begin to walk past once more. "But I warn you, tha's a pretty hefty charm you designed. It could go 'orribly awry if you're no' careful."
She wrapped the gem into a scrap of purple velvet, taking care to not touch it directly, before she put it in her purse. "Oh please, Jiek, your craftsmanship is always impeccable," she said, flashing him fanged smile. "I trust you alone among the thousands of craftsman across dimensions."
"My lady, there you are!"