The Queen's Hostage

Captured.

The words never did seem to register in Vincent's head, not even as he was dragged past hallway after hallway by demons that were more powerful than any other he'd come across in all his years of being a demon hunter.

The plan was simple, get in, get the king's head and get out.

Maybe the higher ups had been way in above their heads when they gave the order but then again they also sent the best of the best to do the job and Vincent was the only one alive.

Captured.

"You're both making a terrible mistake by keeping me alive!" Vincent said coldly. He wasn't bluffing, whether they were strong or made him doubt the skills he'd spent his whole life honing or not, he would kill them, it was just a matter of scheming…and not dying.

"Shut it mortal!" One of the demon's growled. He had a head full of black hair, like really black and so was his partner next to him, the both of them were almost identical but one had a red horn that protruded from the side of his head and the other had two growing from the top of his head.

One horn looked more sinister than his partner, he had darker eyes that glowed a dark red and a much larger body. Two horn looked more quiet, he looked like the type to follow orders like a robot, without complaints.

Vincent tried hard not to wince at the pain that he was feeling from every direction in his body. They'd really did a number on him but he would repay them tenfold once he got his strength back.

"You humans all so over confident that it's funny," One horn said as they rounded a corner and Vincent was forced to walk faster.

There was a large door at the end of the hallway. It seemed to be at least twenty feet tall if not more, at first it looked like silver painted wood with black designs until Vincent looked closer and realized that they were skulls.

Skulls of different kinds and not just humans.

Fucking demons!

They destroyed everything they touched, ruined every life they come in contact with.

These skulls were once people, people with dreams, families, faces.

"Move!" One horn shoved at him hard, he almost tripped but manager to regain his balance in time. The skull doors parted and opened wide the second he was in front of it.

Definitely their throne room.

Funny how he was supposed to be here under different circumstances, he was supposed to kill the demon king but instead he was here as a prisoner, probably one their leader wanted to use to stroke his fucking ego.

"Keep walking!"

Vincent hadn't realized he stopped walking until One Horn poker his back with something extremely sharp that stung terribly.

The throne room was brightly lit, surprisingly so. He half expected it to be dark and gloomy just like the demons now standing behind him.

The walls were painted a dull yellow almost like they were golden at one point, plant vines with thorns covered the rest of the walls up to the ceiling that had strangely lit up runes on them. They moved, like they were actually alive...Like they were watching him. It gave him fucking goosebumps!

They stopped walking but he didn't. His eyes were on the large throne that stood in the center of the hall.

The chair—throne was big enough to seat at least two people, the thorned vines covered the entire armrest and the top was decorated with bloody skulls. They looked like they'd just been separated from their skins.

That wasn't what shocked the shit out of him but the person on the seat.

Their king.

He suddenly felt like a fool seeing the person.

A woman.

A queen.

She had the coldest eyes he'd ever seen and her aura was one that sent chills down his spine.

The first thing that caught his attention was her hair, a shade of red he'd never seen before—or maybe he had. On the floor beneath his men's body.

Blood. Her hair looked like it had been dyed red with blood, wild curls that looked like they could never be tamed, her lips pink and full, the only normal thing on her face honestly. Two black horns sprouted from the inside of her curls and curved at the end. Grey scales covered her neck and the bottom of her jaw.

She wore a black dress. He couldn't see any details apart from the fact that it was as black as night and it covered her arms and legs well enough that he couldn't see her fingers.

Her eyes.

He couldn't look away from them.

Her pupils were white, almost silver in color, cold but looked out of focus.

They were narrowed into slits and corners of her lips tilted up into a condescending sneer.

"You do not fear me, mortal?"

Her voice was unlike anything he'd ever heard. It reminded him of the tunes he heard from his favorite guitar or his mother's keyboard.

Melodic, but dangerous.

She was dangerous.

She was their queen.

"You haven't really given me a reason to," Vincent replied and then felt the same sharp objects from before stabbing into his back and bringing him to his knees.

"You will kneel when you address the Regina!"

It was definitely One Horn's weapon now sticking out of Vincent's back.

His eyes never left the queen's meanwhile, her eyes weren't on his even though it was obvious that she was talking to him. Instead she seemed to be looking at his body, his head, his shoulders...The direction of her gaze was really confusing.

Fuck it!

He would still kill her!

It didn't matter if she turned out to be a she or if she's the most enthralling creature he'd ever laid eyes on.

She was still the leader of the demons, responsible for all of the havoc that her kind has wrecked in his world.

"You speak like you're a guest," she said, her smile wider.

"And you act like you're blind," Vincent retorted but immediately regretted his words.

Shit. He didn't want to die now, that wasn't part of his plan.

He really needed to watch his tongue!

He closed his eyes in preparation for what was to come but instead what he heard was laughter.

Her voice was melodic and bounced off the walls of the throne room.

"Why yes," she laughed, "How smart of you to notice," she leaned back into her throne like it was the most comfortable thing in the world and then put her arms on the armrest that was practically covered in thorns.

What?

The queen of the demons…is blind?

That didn't seem right.

Yet she still wasn't looking at him, even though he felt like she could see him it was obvious that she couldn't.

"I feel like I will like having you around,"

One horn and Two horns were suddenly behind him again, pulling him up from his kneeling position.

"That will be of course..." then she lost her smile and her expression morphed into something so sinister that it made Vincent take a step back.

"…until I decide to have your head join my collection,"

Shit.

They were going to kill him.

But why keep him alive now?

"Can't wait!" Vincent said with a grin and that was the last thing he remembered, before everything went dark.