The Demon Throne of Inferna was carved from the bones of an ancient titan, cold enough to freeze blood. To Ava, it was just a very expensive, very uncomfortable chair.
Below her, the Great Hall was filled with the rhythmic clashing of armor. Hundreds of demon generals stood in perfect unison, looking as stiff as a row of tombstones.
"Your Majesty!" General Vorath barked, his voice sounding like a bag of gravel in a blender. "The border of Inferna is secure. The other eight realms dare not peer into our darkness! We await your command to raze the human territories. Their magic is pathetic! We shall feast!"
Ava didn't lean forward. She rested her chin on her hand, her long, midnight-black hair flowing over her crimson armor.
"More feasting, Vorath?" she whispered. "Is that all you lot think about? We feasted last Tuesday. We feasted the moon before that. I'm surprised half of you can still fit into your chestplates."
The General blinked his three yellow eyes. "But... conquest is life, My Queen!"
"Conquest is a chore," Ava countered, standing up. As she moved, a suffocating pressure filled the room—her demonic aura. The guards immediately hit the floor, not out of respect, but because their knees literally gave out.
"I am bored," Ava announced, stepping down the dais. "I'm going for a walk."
"A walk?!" Vorath scrambled to his feet, his heavy armor clanking loudly. "The Queen of Inferna does not 'walk'! You march! You descend! You—"
"I'm going to the human realm," she said flatly.
The entire hall went silent. Then, the two Royal Guards at the door, Korg and Zale, looked at each other.
"She's finally lost it," Korg whispered.
"Shh! She can hear you, you idiot," Zale hissed back.
"I mean, the human realm? It smells like... sunshine and feelings. Gross."
Ava stopped right in front of them. Her purple eyes glowed dangerously. "If I find a single one of you following me, I will turn your souls into footstools. And Korg? If you mention 'sunshine' again, I'll feed you to the Hell-Hounds."
Korg stood perfectly still, sweating buckets. "Yes, Your Majesty. Enjoy the... uh... disgusting peace and quiet."
Ava flicked her wrist, and a shimmering violet portal tore open in the air. She stepped through with the grace of a cat, leaving her shouting generals and gossiping guards behind.
The transition was like being shoved through a cold waterfall. When she stepped out, she wasn't on the charred volcanic soil of Inferna. She was standing on something soft. Something green.
Grass, she thought, looking down. It doesn't even try to bite my ankles. Fascinating.
She retracted her horns and willed her armor to shift. In a flash of dark light, the terrifying Queen of Inferna was gone. In her place stood a beautiful young woman in a simple traveling cloak, her eyes a soft, harmless brown.
She began to walk, but every few steps, she stopped to poke things. She poked a flower—it didn't explode. She stepped into a stream—the water didn't try to drown her.
"Is everything in this world... lazy?" she muttered to herself. "Where is the struggle? Where is the screaming?"
She reached a high ridge and looked down. Below lay a small, bustling village. It wasn't made of obsidian or bone, but of wood and straw. People were walking around without weapons. Children—actual, tiny humans—were running in circles chasing a furry creature that was definitely not a shadow-beast.
"They are so... fragile," Ava whispered, her eyes wide. "A single mid-tier fire spell would erase this entire valley. Yet, they act as if they are invincible."
For the first time in hundred years, Ava felt a spark of genuine curiosity. She didn't want to conquer this. She wanted to know how it survived.
She began to descend toward the village, unaware that in the center of that peaceful cluster of homes, a simple man was about to change the fate of Inferna forever.
She walked toward the nearby village of Oakhaven, her nose wrinkling at the scent of woodsmoke and baking bread.
She reached a bakery stall where the scent hit her like a physical force—sweet, buttery, and warm.
I must have it, she thought.In Inferna, we eat charred meat and soul-crystals. This... this smells like happiness.
"Well now," the vendor, a portly man in a greasy apron, grunted. "That'll be three copper bits for a honey-bun, missy."
Ava stared at him. "Copper bits?"
"Money, girl! Do you have it or not?"
Ava reached into a tear in reality only she could see and pulled out a fist-sized, glowing purple gem. A Void Diamond, rare enough to buy a kingdom. "I have this," she said, dropping the pulsing gem onto the counter.
The vendor's face turned beet red. "Are you mocking me? This is a piece of colored glass! I asked for copper, not your junk! Get out of here before I call the village guard! Scram!"
Ava's eyes flickered with a hidden purple flame. I could do it, she thought. I could raise my finger, and this man, his stall, and this entire street would be reduced to ash in 2 seconds.
"Your 'money' is primitive," Ava hissed through gritted teeth.
"Yeah, yeah, and your head is in the clouds! Get lost!"
Ava turned on her heel, her cloak billowing. She was fuming. She, the Absolute Queen, had been defeated by a man who smelled like flour. She began to walk away, her pride wounded and her stomach empty.
She was so busy imagining the baker's house on fire that she didn't notice the tall man walking toward her until she bumped right into his steady, warm chest.
"Woah! Careful there," a deep, kind voice said.
Ava looked up. A young man with messy brown hair and a lopsided grin stood there, wearing a leather smithing apron dusted with soot.
"You look like you're about to bite someone's head off," he said, chuckling. He looked at the angry baker, then back at her. "Old Man Miller being a grump again?"
Ava stared into his clear, honest eyes, her rage suddenly faltering. For the first time in century, someone wasn't looking at her with fear.