Queen of the Underworld

by Helen Scott

  Hunter and I swapped places. I stroked her folds for a moment with the mushroomy head of my cock, teasing her, before I thrust into her slightly. She was scorching hot, and instinct told me that it was something to do with her succubus side, especially since her horns were growing even bigger and her hands had turned into claws. She needed to feed, and I was going to give her every ounce of energy I had.

  I thrust into her completely, my cock pulsing with need as I sheathed myself in her. Poppy groaned, her body arching off the bed as I held her still for a moment while I tried not to come right then and there. Her pussy throbbed around me and was tighter than usual thanks to the multiple orgasms she’d experienced since we’d started.

  Without pulling out, I gently rocked my hips against her, moving my cock within her. I reached between us, the angle slightly awkward, and began playing with her clit. She moaned and writhed, and my heart thundered in my chest as I tried to resist the temptation to fuck both of us into oblivion.

  Poppy arched her back and seemed to be trying to angle herself in a different way. I tried to push the position I thought she was going for through the bond, and when she called out, I knew she’d seen it.

  “Is that what you want, angel?” I growled at her.

  “Yes, Knox, please!” Her voice was high-pitched but raspy from all the shouting and screaming she’d been doing.

  I picked up her feet and held her ankles by my ears. She was lucky she had such long, shapely legs; otherwise, I would be stuck holding her feet by my nipples, and I knew if she touched them right now, I would explode.

  With her ass off the bed and her legs in the air, I began to work myself in and out of her. As I did, I moved her legs so that her thighs were pushing against her stomach. Her beautiful swollen pussy was even more exposed to me, and I had to work to keep control of myself.

  The guys were assisting however they could, but I didn’t have the concentration to spare to tell them what she wanted. They seemed to understand for the most part, anyway. Each of them was touching her, playing with her, caressing her until she was humming with desire.

  As I moved, I could feel her body responding in a different way, tensing and releasing as if she were working out. I was hitting all the right buttons, and with the help of my battle brothers, I knew I could get her to come again. The only thing I wasn’t sure of was how to get her succubus side to feed.

  It didn’t seem to matter, though, since her succubus had come out to play completely at that point. Her wings almost functioned as another set of arms, pushing her up and off the bed so she was folded between Emmett, Hunter, and myself. As I thrust into her from the new angle, her voice changed, becoming huskier and more alluring than ever before.

  I did my best to keep working her the way she wanted while Emmett and Hunter assisted, but I was having a hard time keeping control of my body. I stroked into her once, twice more, and she let out a sharp cry that made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. Suddenly, she clenched around me, squeezing me tightly within her, while her whole body bucked and twitched.

  The orgasm rushed through the bond like a tidal wave. I had to clench my teeth and think about anything other than what was happening in front of me to prevent myself from coming. I could tell it hit Emmett and Hunter just the same since Hunt was instantly hard again and Emmett looked as if he were about to orgasm.

  She sat up and kissed me, hard. A bite to my lower lip let me know that she was much more aggressive in succubus form. “I want you to come for me while I suck on Emmett’s and Hunter’s cocks,” she growled.

  Who was I to say no to a command like that? I pumped in and out of her again while she alternated between having Emmett and Hunter in her mouth. The sight was enough to have me on the edge, and I expected to come, but the sensation seemed stalled.

  It was only when Emmett and Hunter both seemed to reach their climax that I was able to find mine. The three of us lost control at the same time, and while I pulsed and spurted within my queen, I felt a strange sensation, as if I were standing in a wind tunnel and it was pushing me toward Poppy. I leaned in and felt a sucking sensation in the core of my body. Poppy had fallen back, supported by her wings, while the three of us were stuck in a weird kind of limbo.

  Finally, it stopped. When I felt normal again, I pulled out of my love and crawled back onto the bed, ready to collapse from exhaustion. As I lay down next to her, I noticed that all of Poppy’s succubus features had receded, and she looked human again.

  21

  Poppy

  When I woke from my post-sex nap, I felt energized and awake. As I looked around, I found all the guys in the room, even the judges. They were all sitting around me, quietly talking. Their deep voices were almost like thunder rumbling in the distance.

  “What’s going on?” I asked, my own voice rough from sleep.

  “We’re discussing battle plans,” Hunter said, his eyes drifting down my body even though a sheet covered most of it.

  “Someone’s here,” Knox grunted.

  Shadow, who was closest to the door, was up and out of the bedroom before I could even start to question anything. Most of the guys followed him, with just Cass staying behind.

  As I got up, he handed me a lovely robe. It was different from the one I had been wearing, and I had no idea where it had come from, but I wasn’t about to turn it down.

  The flowery satin caressed my already sensitive skin, and he watched as my breasts rose and fell as I slipped the material around my shoulders.

  “Are you doing okay?” I asked, painfully aware that I hadn’t had much of a chance to talk with him since he got back from Tartarus.

  “I am. Are you?” he asked, tucking a lock of his dark-brown, almost ebony hair behind his ear. His rich-brown eyes studied me.

  “Just ready to get this fight over with and claim the throne.”

  He nodded sagely as I tied the belt of the gown around my waist. I got the feeling that there was something he was waiting for, and when I looked at our bond, the only thing I could see that I could do anything about was desire, and even then, I couldn’t do much until our guest had left, if then.

  I cupped his cheek, feeling his whiskery beard rub against my hand as I stepped closer to him. I whispered, “I want you too, you know. I just haven’t had time—”

  “I know. It’s not like downtime has been plentiful lately. I just wanted to see you alone for a moment, that’s all.” He shrugged, and I understood what he meant.

  Alone time wasn’t something I’d had much of, let alone time spent with each guy individually. It didn’t help that I was happiest when we were all together. The thought of one giant sex session with all of us flitted through my mind. My mouth watered at the thought of them all touching me, fucking me. It would be amazing.

  I stepped closer to Cass and wrapped my arms around his neck, reaching up to kiss his perfectly pouty lips. His tongue swirled against my own as he deepened the kiss. Desire flared within me, and I wanted to take him to bed, but Knox brushed against our bond at that moment, so I backed off.

  “Later,” I promised.

  “I’ll, uh, just stay here for a moment,” Cass said.

  I raised my eyebrow at him, and he gestured to his crotch where his jeans were straining against his cock as they tried to keep it contained. “Take your time,” I said, before giving him a peck on the cheek.

  The idea of going out there in just a robe, smelling of sex, should have given me pause, but then, my upcoming role as queen replaced it. I would not be a queen who hid away, who was bound by rules that prevented her from doing what she wanted.

  I glanced over my shoulder just in time to catch Cass running a hand through his luscious hair and blowing out a breath. The effect I had on my guys gave me goosebumps every time I thought about it. I loved it.

  The door swung open under my hand, and I stepped out into the brighter living area only to find Hypnos standing in front of all my guys, bar Cass, of course.

  “My queen,” Hy
pnos said, bowing his head as soon as he saw me.

  “Hypnos. What can we help you with?” I asked, crossing my arms over my chest. I was not happy to see this god again so soon after everything that had just happened.

  “I wanted to give you a gift, something that you may find useful in the coming battle, or something that you may wish to use on my brother. I want to prove that I am loyal to you.”

  Knox turned around holding a bottle. Milky water that sparkled like diamonds in the light swirled within.

  “What is it?” I asked, not moving from the position I had taken up just behind my line of protectors.

  “Water from the river Lethe,” Knox said.

  “And for those of us who don’t know what that means?”

  “Lethe is the river of forgetfulness,” Hunter said with a shy smile. “Hypnos is the only one who can gather water from it without it effecting his memories.”

  If that was the case, then it was a generous gift, one that I wouldn’t waste on his brother. I had other plans for him.

  “I appreciate the gift, but if you really want to prove yourself to me, then you may do so by fighting with us.”

  “That is a given, my queen,” Hypnos said.

  “Nothing is a given until it happens,” I countered.

  He bowed his head in acknowledgement, turned, and left.

  I looked at the rest of my guys, offering them a smile before I refocused on the bottle of river water. When I thought about it like that, it sounded much less impressive. There was no doubt it could be powerful, though, if used at the right moment.

  When none of the guys said anything, I asked, “So do we have a plan yet?”

  Knox looked between Hunter and Shadow. When neither of them said anything, he replied, “Yes, but it’s not without its risks.”

  I moved to sit in the armchair while the guys all settled in various seats throughout the room. Cass had appeared at some point and was leaning against the wall behind the couch.

  “Before you came in, Hypnos shared a secret with us. There’s a tunnel, similar to the one that took you to the furies’ cave, that leads from under the Halls of Night to the palace. We can use that to get you in, and then we just have to find the throne room,” Knox said.

  “Remind me why we can’t just jump there again?” I sighed. Why did everything have to be harder than it needed to be?

  “Because none of us have evern been there or even seen it so we could wind up stuck I a wall or something,” Knox winked at me.

  I couldn’t help but smile back as I said, “And I claim the throne from there?”

  Hunter nodded. “Here’s the thing, from what I’ve read, you first have to claim the Helm of Darkness. That will then give you the instructions you need to claim the throne.”

  I could tell from his tone that he was holding something back, some kind of wrinkle in that plan that he didn’t want to tell me about. “What’s wrong?” I asked.

  “Everything I read seems to suggest that you could fail the test of the helm.”

  “It’s a test?”

  “The Helm of Darkness can induce madness. You’ll have to get through that and remain sane to claim its power and your throne.”

  “No big deal, then.” I choked out a laugh.

  “Nothing you can’t handle, princess,” Nolan said with a wink, trying to buoy my spirits. What he didn’t realize was that the news made me more determined than ever.

  “My mom always said I was as stubborn as a mule, so I’ll just dig my heels in and not let it take my sanity, easy,” I joked.

  “There is also the tiny fact that Hel and Alpha will know as soon as we enter the palace thanks to the magic that lies therein, so it’s pretty much guaranteed that they are going to attack us at that point.”

  “And we have no idea how defensible the throne room is?”

  The guys all shook their heads.

  “Well, I’m sure we’ll figure it out once we get there. Right?” I asked, not quite believing it myself.

  We had been trudging through tunnels for what felt like hours, and we only seemed to be going further underground. When the ground finally turned into an incline, I almost jumped for joy, until the fear of what was about to happen swamped me. I silently prayed to any god who would listen, especially Hades and Persephone, that this would go okay and I would be able to take the throne.

  The tunnel opened out into a small storage room filled with casks and bottles of wine. The air was stale as we exited the tunnel, and the room was too small for all of us to fit. Shadow, Knox, and Emmett stood around me like the head on an arrow, while Hunter stood in front of the door, and Nolan, Cass, and Derek waited in the tunnel.

  Hunter’s hand went to the wooden door handle, and as he twisted, I held my breath. The tension in the air seemed to ratchet up second by second as he slowly eased the door open, trying to see what was outside.

  Just as the door was getting wide enough for Hunter to slip through, voices echoed down what must have been a hallway, and he pulled the door shut once more. My heart was pounding in my throat, and all I could think about was what would happen if we got caught.

  As the voices faded, Hunter eased the door open once more, this time dashing out into the hallway once the door was opened wide enough. I could just about make out his auburn hair in the dim light as he moved down the wall and motioned for us to follow him once he came to a junction.

  When I stepped out into the hallway, my body carefully shielded by my hellhounds, I felt the pull like a punch to the gut. My body doubled over, and my breath came in short panting gasps. Hands were on me immediately, and I knew they belonged to my hounds since they had seen this before.

  Once I was able to fully breathe again, I straightened. The pull had turned from a general direction as it was when I’d found my judges into a sensation with pinpoint precision. I knew where we needed to go, and I knew how I needed to get there.

  “You okay?” Hunter’s voice was a low whisper.

  “I’m fine, and I know where we are going now,” I said quietly.

  Hunter nodded as though he understood exactly what I meant. “Follow me and whisper directions in my ear. I’ll make sure you’re safe, love.” He gave me a peck on the cheek and waited for direction.

  “At the end of the hallway, turn left.”

  Without a moment of hesitation, he began moving stealthily through the corridors as he followed my direction. We almost ran into what I could only assume was a patrol a couple times but were able to avoid them thanks to random rooms that we ducked into.

  As we arrived at the last set of doors, I knew when we opened them we would be in the throne room, which was exactly where I needed to be, even if it wasn’t where I wanted to be. At some point, everything would fall on my shoulders, and that point was fast approaching.

  The heavy wooden door swung open silently, and we all filed in. My eyes could barely make sense of the size of the room. Fluted black marble pillars stood every ten feet or so and were wrapped at the bottom and the top with gold metal work before they turned into delicate arches that met in the domed ceiling.

  A walkway was behind each set of pillars, as well as a large open area the size of a basketball court in the middle between the two lines of columns. At the end opposite from us was a set of stairs. Each side curved up gracefully as it approached the area where the throne sat, while the front was a smooth semicircle of black marble.

  Braziers sat on either side of the stairs at certain intervals and on each side of the throne itself. Along the back wall were two more marble pillars, but these had gold filigree all the way up, covering the marble like a cage and glittering in the firelight.

  Behind the throne hung swaths of fabric displaying some of Hades’ and Persephone’s symbols, a serpent reaching for a pomegranate, embroidered in gold on a silver background. The throne itself was carved from stone. The heads of hounds made up the oversized arms. It was the large detailed shape just behind the head that made me curious, but we we
re still too far away for me to make it out.

  I jerked my head, indicating that I wanted to stay close to the wall, and the guys followed my lead. After all, this was my ballgame now. We slowly edged up the side of the room behind one of the lines of pillars until there was no choice but to ascend the stairs to the throne itself, which would leave us exposed to the whole room.

  Part of me wanted to go hide in a corner, and a minuscule part of me hoped this was all a dream, but that would mean my guys were a dream as well, which I couldn’t take. I loved them all with my whole heart, and we had come so far, fought so hard, that I didn’t think I could bare it if we failed at the last moment, especially not because I was weak.

  “We should split up. The throne is too exposed. Some of us should hang back in case some of Hel’s guards appear, at least until we figure out what is needed for you to officially claim the throne,” Emmett said.

  I nodded.

  Knox turned to the group and said, “Myself, Emmett, and Hunter will go up there with her. You four stay back and be ready to act if we get interrupted.”

  I felt annoyance trickle through my bond with Shadow, Nolan, and Derek. They all wanted to be involved, while Cass was thinking more along the same lines as I was—we both just wanted this to be over already. As quickly as I felt it, though, the feeling disappeared. They knew Knox’s orders made sense.

  The four of us edged out from behind the pillars and moved up the stairs. The heat from the braziers licked at me as we passed by, but it didn’t help the shiver traveling down my spine. I couldn’t shake the feeling that we were being watched, and although I kept glancing over my shoulder, the only people I ever saw were my guys.

  The throne was in front of us faster than it seemed possible, and my eyes were drawn to the intricate carvings in the stone. Each piece reflected part of Hades or Persephone or their life together in the Underworld. It made my heart clench in my chest as I took it all in.