Notes:
This is a direct sequel to a previous story; you can find it here:
https://literotica.com/s/astaroth-awakens-ch-02
While I try to keep revising my work to avoid annoying typos, I tend to miss some. If you spot any, please let me know down in the comments.
And if you'd like to get in touch or see more of my work, please check my bio.
Enjoy!
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It had been a couple of nights since Astaroth and his growing retinue had left the ancient temple.
A vast forest, stretching as far as the eye could see, had been waiting for them outside, with just a faded and miniscule dirt path as the only distinctive feature to follow.
Viscera, Astaroth's new obedient hellhound, had explained to them that her party had followed this trail to the temple, trying their best to reach Desire before she could resurrect the demon lord.
The gorgeous lupine woman did not hide her amusement at this, as failing in this mission had been a blessing for her. She had been reveling in her new form and freedom, unleashing her passion on Desire, Astaroth and her old companions new forms every time they made a stop.
Astaroth was on guard, though, for the hellhound had also mentioned that this forest was inhabited by overly zealous elves.
"We asked them for help," Viscera had said when asked about this by her Master, "but they refused, as usual, saying it was a fool's errand and that Desire would not succeed anyway." The hellhound growled with contempt at this memory.
"They were the fools," she said, her lupine ears perking up, "but they know this forest well and could be a threat on the way through it."
Viscera stepped closer to Astaroth after saying this, placing her cushioned and clawed hands gently against his belly.
"I will not allow them to harm you, Master, I will tear them to pieces and lay down my life for you if necessary."
Demon Lord or otherwise, Astaroth had felt a shiver of pride and love for his new pet as she said this, nothing made him happier than those he liberated clearly enjoying their new lives, and Viscera had embraced his gift with zealotry once he had destroyed her barriers.
It was their third day of travel, and they were close to the heart of the forest, it was near this area that Viscera and her party had last seen the elves, so Astaroth had ordered them to stay close in case of an ambush.
Viscera moved to the front; her fluffy ears perked up as she listened for signs of danger. Her former party was in a defensive position around Astaroth. On his sides were Viscera's former rogue, who had now assumed a more vulpine shape and had taken the name Foxeye and her former sorcerer, now sporting an incubus-like shape and who had rechristened himself as Wantonness.
Right behind Viscera was her former fighter and team muscle, the now bovine looking Tauroc.
None of them had been particularly original with their new names, but it didn't matter, what mattered is that they were their chosen names, and bound them closer to their new life as Astaroth's followers.
Desire, as it bequeathed her position as the Demon Lord's right hand, sat on his arm in a sensual pose, her stunning red skin snuggled against her Master's dark fur.
Viscera advanced with preternatural grace up front, her cushioned wolf feet not making a sound as she kept a close eye on their surroundings.
She had salvaged what was left of her armour into something more utilitarian, given her new form. Her breastplate had been fixed, and she wore it very much as before, covering her chest and belly to avoid any grievous injuries in those vital areas. Her greaves had been fixed as best she could, protecting the front side of her thighs and shins, but not much else, her legs now much too different for her old armour.
Furthermore, her arms and head were completely exposed, something she had mentioned bothered her, but getting her a more adequate set of armour would have to wait.
The forest had become almost oppressive, it's dense canopy closing over them like a verdant dome.
Suddenly, Viscera stopped and raised her claw telling them to halt, her ears twitching as she surveyed the area. The incessant sounds of nature that had accompanied them for miles had disappeared, and an odd uneasiness had taken their place.
Astaroth let Desire down from his arm, and he concentrated his powers on his hands, ready for the attack that was surely coming, while the succubus hid behind his massive frame.
Foxeye, Wantonness and Tauroc drew their weapons and circled around their Master, ready to defend him from potential attackers.
They didn't have to wait long; when their attackers realized they had been noticed, they sprang their assault without hesitation.
A group of what were undoubtedly elves had surrounded them, and quickly unloaded their bows against Astaroth and his retinue.
The Demon Lord was prepared, lucky for him, and in a fraction of a second deployed a defensive spell that knocked the arrows out of the air before they could hit their targets.
He took a look at their assailants, the elves had cunningly camouflaged themselves against the backdrop of the forest, becoming almost impossible to spot to an untrained eye.
Thankfully for Astaroth, he didn't need to see them clearly, now that he knew where they were, he could focus on their feelings, desires and sins, and just as any other mortals, they shone like lighthouses in the shadows of the forest.
Elves were particularly interesting, he thought, for while their appearance was calm and temperate on the outside, on the inside they were raging tempests of raw emotion and passion.
Amongst his attackers, the demon lord picked up a particularly bright light. At the back of the group, coordinating them, was an elven woman. Her green eyes pierced the forest with a sharpness beyond that of any arrow, and her tied back mane of red hair looked like a barely contained bonfire.
But by the abyss her emotions were delicious, Astaroth thought. She was a pressurized bottle of rage, lust and masochistic desire.
Astaroth wanted her, he had no doubts in his mind.
"Viscera!" he said, raising his voice as his spell repelled the current attack.
The hellhound raised her ears and looked at him, waiting for his orders.
The demon lord lifted his hand and pointed directly at the blue-eyed elf, his power giving Viscera her "scent" so to speak.
"Get her for me," he said, as his hound nodded and bared her teeth.
Viscera leaped into the overgrowth like a furious ball of lighting, and used her recently acquired demonic strength to toss around the other elves as she made a beeline for her target.
In the meantime, Astaroth slammed his fist against his chest, summoning his growing strength and sharing it with his retinue, who howled as if filled their bodies with the unbridled power of their lord.
"Take them down, but keep as many alive as you can. We could use their abilities," the demon lord said with eerie calm as the arrows were still raining on them.
With a wave of his hand, he blew the next volley of arrows back to the shooters, forcing them to scramble for cover amongst the trees, and this was all the opening his retinue needed to start their offensive.
Foxeye and Wantonness darted quickly into the thicket, using their speed to rapidly corner and subdue several elves with snares and spells, while Tauroc crashed against the trees with his mighty frame, forcing several of their attackers off the branches they had perched themselves in, all while shrugging off arrows and daggers digging into his thick skin and fur as if they were made of paper.
While Astaroth really enjoyed breaking through the barriers of his future followers till they couldn't resist their own desires, this situation needed some haste, so he focused his essence on a patch of ground next to him,
With an unnatural rending sound, space itself was torn open, and a view to a vast and deep well of swirling purples opened into view through the portal Astaroth had just created, an opening to his very essence.
He raised his clawed hand, and as he did, long and rubbery looking tentacles emerged from the space, dripping a thick purple ichor that threatened to consume everything it touched.
Astaroth gestured towards the fallen and subdued elves, and as he did, the tentacles lunged forward, grabbing their downed enemies and dragging them into the swirling infinity on the other side of the portal.
Desire, still covering behind her Master, used her devilish powers to distract and entrance any enemy that dared lay eyes on her, leaving them exposed for Astaroth to capture with his tentacles and also drag onto the purple abyss opened before them.
Sounds of fear and distress came out of the portal as more and more of their attackers were thrown into it, but these slowly were turning into moans and pants of pleasure.
Desire, ever the curious cat she was, took a peek inside while smiling wide, almost posing for her Master to look at her backside while she investigated.
"What's this Master?" she asked as her tail twitched and swayed.
Astaroth threw a couple more elves into the portal using its tentacles.
"It's an opening into my very soul," he said in a nonchalant voice. "I don't have time to liberate these elves in a more entertaining manner, so I'm literally drowning them in my essence. Regardless of their resistance, they will be transformed in minutes at most, no mortal can withstand having so much of it pumped into them."