Nicole's Note: This story is from an implied-afab girl's point of view and contains fantasy nc (with heavy brainwashing), mind control, corruption, femdom, loving degradation, and everything else listed in the tags. Real-life con-noncon requires a lot of trust, safewords, and other things a fantasy can fudge a little. Enjoy the kink responsibly, and enjoy the story!
Also, my returning readers might have noticed my absence! The last two years were hard on me, but I should be back for good now. Thanks for bearing with us. <3
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Nearly a half-century ago, the Kingdom of the Gods fell into a ruin born of its own decadence as seductive demons claimed the minds and souls of the Royal Family. As the demons began their war of lusty conquest, one knightly order sought to turn the tide by an unconventional path...
Lady Majrista hesitated on the first step. But only the first step.
She didn't look back, either, as the door closed behind her and blocked out the sunlight above, nor did she slow her pace. Her eyes adjusted quickly as she descended the stairs, thanks to the strange glowing designs and runes running across the cellar walls. She didn't even react to the scents in the air, the scents of mildew and moss, maple syrup, herbs, and the slightest whiff of brimstone.
The knight did wrinkle her nose slightly when she noticed a bit of wetness on the railing, and she
almost
paused.
She reached towards it. Was that... blood?
She shook her head and pressed on, and her face was neutral once more by the time she reached the bottom of the stairs. She couldn't afford to show even a trace of weakness to the being she was arranged to meet with tonight.
"Ah! There you are." A woman stood there, in the middle of the cellar, her posture as gracefully relaxed as if she was drifting around a formal ball looking for conversation. Glowing designs seemed to crawl around the floor around her, slithering and swirling around the central location as if pulled into a roiling whirlpool. She smiled brightly, color flooding her dimpled cheeks and excitement rushing to those brilliant blue eyes. Ringed by candles as she was--candles that never burned down, never went out on their own, never flared or dimmed--she was positively glowing, her moonstone-laden necklace glittering, her flowing white dress shining like moonlight. "A servant of the honorable Duke Yoric, I presume?"
"... well." Majrista's jaw set. She hesitated, giving the creature a wary... appraisal.
She'd been warned of the creature's beauty, but... gods. Even with her magic contained by the strange wards of this place, even in a relatively humanoid form--aside from that flicking mischievous tail, those glimmering amber eyes, those...
proportions
that couldn't possibly belong to any unmagicked mortal--the sweet fiend's gorgeous visage nearly stole Majrista's breath away on the spot.
The demoness watched her fumble, still with that small, unwavering smile.
Majrista took a deep breath. "Well. Not exactly. I--"
"Ah! My mistake, my dear." The sweet fiend's voice cut past Majrista's with such cool confidence, it barely came off as an interruption. She pouted slightly, her luscious red lips drawing Majrista's eye, so full, so bright against the cool crystal undertones of her sandy-brown complexion. "I only thought, as you wear the same brand as those that came down here before..." She gestured slightly to Majrista's wrist.
Majrista didn't look. She knew the demon referred to the tattoo. She took another breath, and held it, quickly mentally running through the lessons she'd sat through all those years ago. She hadn't spent long learning adeptry, granted, but she knew she was a quick study. She could do a lot with the smattering she'd been taught.
Don't lie to her, and she won't lie to you. Just don't offer any weaknesses she can exploit.
"The Duke has been dead for several months now. Rendered void by a succubus." She tried to ignore the insincerely sympathetic look the demoness immediately affected. "I am Lady Majrista of Yoric. I serve the Duke's daughter, Lady--
Duchess
Eve Yoric."
"I
see
!" The demoness giggled. "How charming! I hope the dear girl is adjusting well to leadership. She's, what, twenty-one?"
"Um... twenty-two." Majrista swallowed. How did she know...?
"Oh, I'm being rude, aren't I?" the demoness said sweetly, flicking an errant lock of deep chestnut-brown hair from her eyes with one dainty delicate finger. She smiled and gave a smart little curtsey--though not quite as low as Majrista thought was appropriate, considering her position at the knights' complete mercy. "My name is Edulcixiantia, but you may call me
Luci
~" Her lashes fluttered. "It's so lovely to meet you, Rista--may I call you Rista?"
Rista flushed. "I--
"It's just such a
pretty
name! Soft and yet so upbeat and cheerful!" Luci beamed, steepling her fingers together and leaning towards Majrista, just to the edge of the candles. "So, to what do I owe the honor of meeting the leader of the Knights of Yoric, sweetie?"
Majrista decided to ignore the nickname, as well as how Luci's voice sounded so dainty and fluttering when she lavished compliments upon it. She also didn't bother to correct Luci--Eve was officially their leader, but such technicalities didn't seem necessarily to bring up here, especially as they would only make Majrista look weak by comparison. "I am... I am here to question you, Luci." It sounded so unimpressive when she said it with the demon's cute little nickname, she thought irritably. "We have never caught a demoness alive before, let alone one of your... magnitude."
"Aww, my
magnitude
!" Luci preened and giggled and batted her eyelashes. "You've never caught even one? Not even a silly imp, or a slutty little devourer?"
Majrista felt embarrassed, so she just shrugged. "Not... not until now, anyways. That's not the point."
"Well, technically, sweetie..." Luci smirked, twirling a lock of her hair idly around a finger, "I only ask because you
still
haven't caught one. After all, it wasn't your knights that bound me in this quaint little cellar, was it?"
Majrista swallowed. "Well... that's not exactly..."
"Those silly mothboys." Luci's eyes sparkled. "So cute with all their spells and charms. Shouldn't you be questioning them instead, Rista?"
"We don't need
their
help." Majrista bit her lip as she heard the defensiveness in her own voice. She cleared her throat. "The moth sprites do not... concern you or I. Our kingdom has never relied upon such primitive magics."
"Of
course
not!" Luci agreed, nodding eagerly. Majrista tried to ignore how those breasts, so tightly contained in that gorgeous white dress, bounced with every little motion she made. She focused instead on Luci's eyes, such a bright, clear blue. "It's so much more dignified to come down here and beg a cute demon for advice, isn't it?"
"I..." Majrista hesitated, shifting uneasily. "I-I mean, we aren't... we are not
begging
." She made her voice resolute and glared, staring the demoness right in the eye. "We are demanding, and you will cease this... this banter. Unless you do not wish to open a two-way contract?"
The demon's eyebrow arched sightly. Her eyes shimmered, reflecting the flickering candlelights and Majrista's own form--which looked so small, reflected as it was, surrounded by those circles of burning amber light. "Ooh. You know some summoning principles, don't you, Rista?"
Majrista gave a terse nod. Inwardly, she felt a little sense of satisfaction that the demoness seemed... impressed. The Knights of Yoric believed in holding as many skillsets as possible for use in the field, and Lady Majrista had always taken this to heart. Her training was... not exactly formal, or comprehensive, but Majrista felt she was pretty damn good for her level. And there seemed no reason to volunteer anything else to Luci.
"Very good." Luci leaned back and arched her back in a long, back-cracking stretch. Majrista couldn't help but admire the demon's prodigious assets, so...
casually
placed on display before her. Her gaze snapped back to eye level as Luci straightened. Not that the sweet fiend could try anything even if she stared openly, of course. "So I'm sure you'll know, of
course
, that any true two-way contract requires
careful
attention to details."
"Of course." Lady Majrista sniffed, trying to keep her expression deeply unimpressed. But that
was