Bitches on multiple worlds

"Are we there yet?" Tamamo asked.

"It can be hard to tell," Promestein replied. "I can only jump to worlds that were created as a result of the paradox. Apparently those worlds exist in a multiverse separate from other multiverses."

"What does that mean in human?" Albert asked.

"It means that mostly these worlds all look alike," Promestein answered. "The differences between the worlds could be extreme, such as male monsters or monsters that hug instead of drink semen. Or the differences could be so subtle we could roam one of these worlds for weeks before realizing we weren't in the right place."

"Fortunately, we're immortal, so we have time," Tamamo said.

"Um…. I'm not immortal," Albert noted.

"Don't worry," Promestein said. "I have a fix on your world. We can take you back whenever you want."

"That's reassuring," Albert said, sighing in relief. "So how long do you two plan to go looking for this Luka guy?"

"A few more jumps," Tamamo replied. "After that, we'll be pushing our luck. We might run into a world with different physics. One where we can't easily jump back."

"That's the primary danger of dimensional travel," Promestein explained. "It's why gods, despite having the power to cross dimensions, usually don't do it. They don't want to run the risk of getting stranded on a world where there's no magic and thus becoming mortal."

"Although Ilias and the Dark God developed quite the taste for Earth," Tamamo chortled.

"Vegas especially," Promestein noted. "Get those two in a casino and they'll sprout gray hairs before you can pull them out. That's about the only thing that frightens them about Earth, is the fact that they age a little every time they go there."

"Earth?" Albert asked. "You mean like, the power of earth? It's a world, too?"

"That's what the humans call it," Promestein answered. "Earth is an alternate version of our worlds where all monsters and angels were eradicated as a result of the Great Monster Wars."

"On most worlds, such as your own, I assume," Tamamo continued. "The Great Monster Wars ended indecisively. The Ancestors were sealed and Ilias won a victory of sorts, but monsters continued to exist and angels mostly stay out of surface affairs, so long as monsters don't try to conquer the human kingdoms."

"But on others, the angels, monsters, and in Earth's case, the humans, won," Promestein finished. "On Earth, the victory was so destructive that it destroyed human civilization and left little trace of the history to discover. So the humans were left with nothing more than the whispers of legends, of dragons, elves, fairies, and angels. That's the world Luka comes from."

"Well, this definitely isn't Earth," Albert said, sniffing the air. "There are slimes in this region. I'd know that pleasant fruity smell anywhere."

"I can smell it too," Tamamo laughed. "We're on Ilias Continent, right?"

"Yeah," Promestein confirmed. "When we jump we always end up in the same geographical location. I don't have your sense of smell, so I'll take your word- wait, do you feel that?"

"A presence is near," Tamamo said grimly. "A very powerful presence."

"Really powerful," Albert agreed. "Why the only being I know of that exudes that much power…."

"A god," Promestein said sourly. "Shit. We might want to jump again, like now. It's not Ilias, that's for sure. Tamamo, does it feel like Alipheese?"

"No," Tamamo answered. "No, I think we are definitely not on the paradox world. If anything, the being that's in the area is more powerful than Ilias or Alipheese."

"Seriously?!?" Albert exclaimed. "So why are we not gone yet!?"

"I have to agree with our male companion," Promestein said. "I'm gonna get us out of here."

"Wait," Tamamo ordered. "I'm not sensing hostility and the slimes in the area don't seem alarmed by the presence of this deity. Promestein, aren't you curious?"

"My curiosity takes a back seat to my dislike of gods," Promestein answered. "I hate gods. But your senses as an Ancestor are pretty close to godlike. If you think it's safe…"

"I didn't say it was safe," Tamamo clarified. "Just that she's not hostile. And clearly she knows of our presence. An ancestor, a monster lord, and an angel would certainly draw her attention."

"Yeah, no doubt," Promestein agreed. "In fact, I'm pretty sure she's coming to get a closer look at us."

Promestein, despite her natural curiosity, was on edge. Despite Tamamo's assurances, Promestein couldn't see what Tamamo could with her senses. The overwhelming pressure of the being was obvious enough, and the pressure was growing. She could tell from the crackling in the air that the being was not holy, at least not in the sense that Ilias was. Whatever this god was, she was made of neither holy nor dark energy. What the hell was she?

"She" stomped into the clearing. "She" wasn't a she at all, in fact. The being was a large man, standing eight feet tall. He was older, with flowing white hair and a long white beard. Energy crackled around him. Promestein was aware that despite the power the three of them had, they only continued to exist at this being's sufferance. He was far beyond even an Ancestor. Far beyond Ilias or Alipheese, even. Was that the main difference between this world and other worlds like theirs? A foreign god had taken over?

"Um…. Should we prostrate ourselves right now?" Albert asked, before being almost flattened by the booming voice of the god.

"Why have you come to my world?!!!!" the god bellowed. Whether or not Tamamo, Albert, or Promestein had planned to prostrate themselves, they involuntarily did so. Tamamo experienced a feeling she never had before. She peed herself a little. But the fox was too old to be intimidated for long. Rising to her feet, she addressed the god.

"We come to your world in peace, oh exalted one!" Tamamo said. "I am searching for my husband. He was lost on a world like this one and I just want to find out what happened to him."

"Your husband is of no concern to one such as me!" the god roared. "Now begone, back to your world, lest I lost my patience and destroy you with a snap of my fingers!"

Promestein needed no further encouragement, reaching for her dimensional hopper and fumbling for the button. Before she could press it, however, another presence, one only detectable by her sweet smell, intervened.

"Now, Pookie, what have I told you about bullying travelers?" the little slime girl said, admonishing the god. Can't you see the cute, lovely fox girl is looking for the love of her life?"

"That 'fox girl' is very powerful, and thus very dangerous," the god said, although the pressure in the area dropped to a fraction of what it had been before. Promestein wondered how Tamamo had detected no hostility. What would this god have been like had he truly been hostile?!

"Do you see how fluffy those tails are?" the slime girl responded. "How adorable her ears are?"

"Well," the god mused. "She is lovely. And adorable. And fluffy. She is still immensely powerful, however. I'm not comfortable with her being so close to our children."

"Children?!?" Promestein exclaimed in disbelief. "You too are….?"

"Yep," the slime girl said proudly. "Let me introduce myself. My name is Chloe. And this is my bitch."

"Chloe," the bitc- er… god, said, now totally deflated. "I've told you… don't call me your bitch around strangers. I need to be respected if I'm to properly intimidate trespassers."

"Okay, Pookie," Chloe giggled.

"And don't call me Pookie either," the god admonished. "You know my name! Mine is a name known throughout all the worlds! Every world, even those worlds I never existed on, know of my legendary acts."

"Legendary acts or no, you'll always be my bitch," Chloe said, extending a tendril of slime to the god. The tendril slipped into the god's pants, causing him to moan. Quickly recovering his senses, he protested.

"Chloe!" the god said. "Not in front of people!"

"What are you?" Chloe prompted.

"I am the supreme god of O- ooohhhhhh."

"That's on your world," Chloe reminded him. "What are you here?"

"Y-Your bitch," the god said, now so thoroughly deflated that there was no longer any pressure in the air.

"I'm glad you still know your place," Chloe giggled. "Now do your magic-type stuff to help this woman find her dear husband and then I'll wrap you up good. Would you like that?"

"Yes!" the god exclaimed. "I will aid this fine fox woman any way I can!"

"Oh thank you so much!" Tamamo exclaimed, wrapping the god up in all nine of her tails. The god's eyes rolled back. Chloe cleared her throat.

"Oh, sorry," Tamamo said hastily. "Sometimes I forget the effect my tails have on men who aren't used to the fluffiness."

"Fluffy…." The god said wistfully.

"So Chloe mentioned that this wasn't your world," Promestein said. "So that must mean you travel the dimensions?"

"Why of course!" the god said proudly. "I've been to thousands of worlds, seen wonders you can't even imagine!"

"Is there any chance you could show us how to get to one particular world?"

"Do you know where it is?"

"That's the problem," Promestein said. "I can't distinguish it from other worlds of similar origin."

"Can you describe it?" the god asked. "Perhaps I've been there."

"It's a very typical world, much like this one," Promestein replied. "But it is unique in one respect. It was created due to a paradox not so long ago."

"Ah yes, a paradox," the god mused. "Some fool god was screwing around with forces she didn't understand. Fortunately, the version of her on this world knows enough to behave. Thanks to my presence here. But I digress. I'm afraid your explanation doesn't tell me much. Thousands of worlds were created as a result of that paradox. This is one of them."

"This particular world was the first one created," Promestein explained. "There's the original, and then there's the second one created, the paradox world as Luka called it."

"Ah, now that narrows it down significantly!" the god said happily. "I know exactly where you want to go, and I can even send you there with but a thought! Where on that world would you like to go?"

"You can do that?!" Tamamo exclaimed. "That's amazing! You truly are a powerful god!"

"Aw, shucks," the god said, blushing. "Truly, it's nothing, just a little interdimensional travel. You yourselves already can do that. I can just make it a little more precise, that's all."

"We'd like to go to the Monster Lord's castle on that world," Tamamo requested. "If anyone knows what happened to my husband, it would be her."

"Then it is d-! Ow! Quit that!"

The god grimaced as he was hit by a tiny lightning bolt. A tiny slime girl giggled. The god sighed and picked her up off the ground.

"Now what have I told you about striking people with your lightning?" the god said, wagging his finger at his slime child.

"It's not nice," the slime child mumbled, pouting.

"That's right," the god said. "We only strike down people who make us very angry. We do not use lightning on people just for fun. Your mother is a good monster. You don't want to be a bad monster, do you?"

The slime child shook her head.

"And since you are a demigod, your responsibilities are going to be far greater than any ordinary monster," the god told her. "With your power, you might even be monster lord someday."

"That would be awesome!" the little slime girl exulted. "I promise not to shock people for fun anymore."

"I know you don't mean that, but thankfully you'll grow out of it. I hope."

The god put his child down. "Kids," he said, shaking his head as the little slime child giggled and scampered off. The god shook his head as he heard a zap and someone cry out in pain. "I see she and her sister are having a lightning duel again. I really wish you'd show me more respect around the kids, Chloe. They don't listen to me."

"You can tell me all about it while you're wrapped up," Chloe purred.

"Well, I guess we should get to that, then," the god said with finality. "Travelers, I shall now send you to your destination!"

"Wait!" Promestein shouted. "I just have to know your name."

"My name?" the god replied. "My name is Zeus, the ruler of Olympus. At least when Chloe lets me visit home."

And with that, the trio were whisked away to the paradox world.

"Eden, you should really get some sleep," Ilias observed.

"You have assigned me a task, goddess," Eden replied. "I have not slept in over thirty years. Sleep is a luxury, not a requirement. I shall sleep when the tasks you have set for me have been completed."

"You'll sleep now," Ilias ordered. "That's a command from your goddess. I just woke up. I'll watch Luka and Alice. I'm a little unnerved by the whole Alma Elma situation. I'm surprisingly not in the mood to go get eaten today. So you get rest, I'll hold down the fort."

"As my goddess commands," Eden said, bowing slightly and teleporting to her quarters.

Ilias smiled in satisfaction. Actually appreciating Eden and being kind to her was a nice chance of pace. I wonder how different Micaela and Lucifina will turn out being brought up by this new me? Of course, that was a complicated question, since an adult version of Micaela still resided in Enrika, unaware of the change in her goddess' outlook. After all, Ilias had hastily copied this world from another existing world. The God of Luka's world, according to legend, had required six days to get his world just right. Ilias had had to whip something up in less than a minute. Not bad, considering the circumstances. Let's see that Earth God pull that off!

Alice and Luka had debarked and checked into an inn in Port Natalia. Already Luka had gotten himself a quest, one that would be rather dangerous, since it involved a journey to the bottom of the sea. A rewind or three was likely. Cindy wouldn't be a problem at least. She was harmless. If she defeated Luka, he'd just endure her washing and Alice would give him a proper evaluation, probably one much more snarky than any of Ilias' evaluations. But the predators of the deep handled feeding in a more… final way. Then again, Alice seemed to be in an intervening mood. It was doubtful that she'd allow Luka to die. The incident with the spider had been a fluke, too quick for Alice to react.

Luka undressed, now quite comfortable with getting naked in front of Alice. There were no lewd thoughts on his mind, aside from fleeting glances at Alice's breasts and occasional thoughts of her licking honey off her fingers, since Alice teased him mercilessly by constantly going to that jar for a few long, slow licks. But his lascivious thoughts were actually far less frequent or intense than the average male's. Most men thought of something lewd every couple of minutes.

While Alice couldn't read Luka's mind, she was clearly annoyed at his lack of horniness. Luka never initiated or asked for sex. It only crossed his mind to actually do something with Alice when Alice already had him wrapped up in her tail. Otherwise, his thoughts were never more than idle, passing thoughts about boobs and that tongue.

Ilias quickly scanned her perfect memory. This was a boring one, she thought. This was where Alice first used her tail on Luka in her world. In Luka's world, he'd set right out on his quest because he'd taken Alice's casual disregard for his life personally in a way Ilias' more innocent Luka had not. That had caused him to forget good sense and act emotionally, seeking validation in completing a quest that very day, and he'd paid a price for it when he ran into Cindy. But here, the situation was more akin to the history Ilias was familiar with. Alice would announce that she was hungry, throw him down, and ravish him with that tail of hers. Only slightly less boring than the handjob, although a lot less intense than the lower mouth, which had caught Ilias off guard.

Ilias watched, expecting Alice to pounce on him at any moment. But Alice didn't pounce. Instead, her eyes flashed and Luka's clothes disappeared into a pocket dimension. He looked around in vain, trying to locate them. Alice just smirked and commented on his idiocy, misplacing his clothes in such a tiny hotel room.

Luka was about to just crawl into bed and get under the covers, when Alice pulled out that jar again. Luka, always embarrassed to be turned on by it, lest Alice think her was some kind of perverted fetishist, looked away. Normally, Alice was content with that, knowing that Luka would steal glances anyway. He simply could not help himself. But tonight Alice was impatient. With a sharp command, she ordered Luka to watch. Luka obeyed, trying to maintain a neutral expression as she seductively ate her honey. His poker face was impressive, but his penis told a different story. It was already throbbing in reaction to the messages it was getting from Luka's eyes.

While Ilias was no fetishist either, except for vore, she had experienced that tongue once herself. It was starting to have an effect on the goddess as wel. Ilias had no shame about watching, especially since Alice couldn't see her. Ilias could feel herself getting moist.

Alice beckoned Luka to come closer. She dipped her finger into the honey and commanded Luka to eat it off her finger. Luka was hesitant, but started to obey, only for Alice to turn the jar over and dump it all over him.

"Oh, how clumsy of me!" Alice exclaimed. "This is the only jar of Happiness Honey we have!"

"You did that on purpose!" Luka said accusingly. "Now I've got to shower again!"

"You are not going to just let all that honey go down the drain!" Alice scolded. "I worked hard for that Happiness Honey!"

"You didn't do anything! I fought the harpy queen! You didn't even want me to go on that mission!"

"Nevertheless, the harpy queen thanked ME with the honey, and I intend to eat it," Alice said firmly.

"But Alice," Luka protested. "How are you going to eat the happiness honey when its all over- you don't mean?"

"That's exactly what I mean," she said, licking her lips. "Now hold still and let me enjoy my honey."

Alice had promised Luka her mouth the night before, and had performed a bit of a bait and switch. Luka had gotten plenty of mouth, but not the mouth he'd hoped for. Now Alice was making up for her misdirection, licking him all over his body. Even before she reached his penis, he could barely stand, so great was the pleasure.

"No!" Alice admonished. "Do not get the bed all sticky! Hold onto me while I lick!"

Ilias had had no desire to see Luka go into her lower mouth. But this… this was getting Ilias all hot and bothered. Her hand wandered down to her crotch as she watched, unable to take her eyes off the couple.

Where there was a lot of honey, Alice would start out licking lightly, easily getting a lot of honey on her tongue in the process and swallowing, before going to another part of his body to get more. Where there was only a little honey, she licked long and hard, her slightly rough tongue removing even the tiniest bits of honey from his chest, shoulders, neck, and back. Luka was clearly being tortured. As much as he enjoyed the feel of her tongue, his penis was aching, and excess honey kept on flowing down to his crotch. Ilias was experiencing some excess moisture of her own, and found herself doing something she'd never tried before: masturbation.

Ilias had read that Luka could no longer masturbate due to being unable to stimulate himself adequately due to his frequent experiences with monsters. Ilias suspected she might run into the same problem, but for now, there was no problem at all. Her fingers weren't nearly as pleasurable as a monster's body, but the newness of the experience combined with the visual stimulation she was getting was making the experience quite nice indeed. Not nearly as good as what Luka was getting, of course. Ilias found herself feeling slightly envious. Might have to get my hands on some honey, Ilias thought.

Alice was nothing if not a voracious eater, so it took her only fifteen minutes to completely remove most of the honey from Luka's upper body. Luka sighed in anticipation as she knelt down, holding his penis lightly in her hand. Alice slowly extended her tongue to its full length as Luka's eyes went wide. And then, Alice just held that pose for awhile, making Luka look at what he wanted so badly.

In his position, Ilias, or Elias, would have grabbed Alice's head and shoved his dick all the way into her throat. Luka's mind was now filled with lust, and yet he wouldn't do it. But he sure wanted to. At that moment, Alice could have demanded he serve her for life as her slave, and he would have readily agreed just to get her to lick his penis just once.

Finally, tongue still fully extended, Alice slowly devoured his entire length, her tongue working on removing the honey from his balls while her mouth sucked eagerly at his honey covered member. Ilias' fingers unconsciously sped up.

Alice withdrew her mouth and inspected Luka's modest dick. "Looks clean," Alice said. "I guess I'm done."

"Alice…" Luka said, his eyes pleading.

"Oh, I thought I was just enjoying my honey," Alice said. "That wasn't meant to be lewd. But you have a dirty mind, I see. What kind of world do we live in where a girl can't eat honey off a man's penis and him not have perverted thoughts?"

More than a man was having perverted thoughts. A goddess was having some perverted thoughts of her own as her breathing quickened and her hand found her most sensitive spot.

"C'mon, Alice!" Ilias breathed. "Don't leave me hanging here!"

Luka had the same thought, but didn't express it. Instead, he produced a honey covered hand. Luka had touched his body after the honey had been poured on him and Alice had neglected to notice that his right hand still had a lot of honey on it.

Still kneeling down, Alice opened her mouth and Luka gave her his fingers, one by one. Alice sucked the honey carefully off of each one, leaving only his palm still covered in it. Alice grasped his wrist, ready to lick it off his palm as well, but finally Luka took some initiative. Grasping his own penis with that palm, he rubbed honey all over it.

Alice pounced on it like a monster pouncing on prey, which Ilias guessed was a fairly accurate description. Alice's snake tongue coiled around Luka's dick, spinning and swirling. She deep throated him and sucked hard to make sure she cleaned him up. Even when Luka seemed to be clean, she didn't stop, her head moving up and down, her tongue swirling furiously.

Luka screamed in ecstasy as he emptied his built up lust into Alice's eager mouth. Ilias screamed in ecstasy as well as her own orgasm wracked her body.

"Wow," Promestein breathed, staring at the Monster Lord's castle. "So we're here. Just like that."

"I toldja we should meet that god!" Tamamo chortled. "What did he say his name was again?"

"Um…. Zeus?" Promestein responded, eyes wide.

"That name doesn't ring a bell," Tamamo replied.

"I've never heard of the guy either," Albert chimed in.

"Earth had countless legends about his pantheon of gods!" Promestein yelled. "And to find out he actually exists! I could win another Nobel just for meeting the guy!"

Tamamo and Albert just stared at her.

"I'm more focused on the fact that he's a slime girl's bitch," Albert pointed out.

"Zeus was known as quite the perv," Promestein admitted. "Incredibly powerful, but I Imagine he fell victim very quickly to the slime girl's pleasure attacks."

"Yeah, powerful, no question," Albert said. "But also…. Still a bitch."

"Oh, you say that now that you're not in his presence," Tamamo laughed. "But as I recall, you are weak to pleasure as well."

"Correction… WAS weak to pleasure!" Albert replied. "I'm a pretty powerful being myself. You're one of the most sexually powerful monster girls in existence and I managed to take two of your tails and still remain upright. And most importantly, I haven't become your bitc- ohhhhh…."

"You were saying?" Tamamo asked sweetly, her seventh best tail stroking Albert's penis.

"This- this must be your special fluffy tail!" Albert croaked. "I'll do anything if you don't stop! Just stroke me with your special fluffy tail forever! I'll serve you as your slave for life! I'll give you my whole kingdom!"

"Hmmmm…" Tamamo muttered, although she didn't stop stroking. "First, this is not my special fluffy tail. It's my seventh best tail. I'll have to like you a lot better for you to even get to my fifth best tail."

"You're…. seventh? Inconceivable! It's so many times better than your eighth!"

"Promestein, cup please?" Tamamo asked politely.

Promestein reached into her bag and pulled out another cup. Tamamo tightened her tail and increased her stroking while holding the cup near the head of Albert's penis.

"Further," Tamamo added. "I've gotten many human kings to hand their kingdoms over to me. And it took more than my seventh best tail to do it. Some kings wouldn't submit until I actually had sex with them. That means that you're not as strong in that way as a human monarch. And you know what that makes you?"

"A…. a bitch?" Albert said shakily.

"A bitch," Tamamo agreed, as Albert's semen spurted into her cup, nearly filling it.

Tamamo released Albert's dick and downed the semen, grimacing and sticking her tongue out.

"Ughlk," she exclaimed. "It actually gets worse every time I taste it. Be thankful your semen is so high in nutrients. Otherwise you'd be getting nothing from me."

"So what exactly would it take to get your second best tail, assuming the special one is forever out of my reach?" Albert asked.

"Save the world. Or my husband, should he need saving."

"And what would it take to get you to actually have sex with me?"

"Your kingdom," Tamamo said sweetly. "and every monster boy with decent tasting semen as my harem."

"I…." Albert started, then slapped himself. "I am stronger than that, temptress! I would never give up my kingdom! What can I get for a province? Maybe your third best tail?"

"I used to get provinces just for showing a little cleavage."

"So how long did it take for Luka to get your special fluffy tail?" Albert asked. "What did he have to do?"

"Luka? Oh, Luka got the special one the first time," Tamamo giggled.

"WHAT?!! First time?! First off, why is he not dead, second, why did he marry someone else before marrying you, third, what kind of woman is this other chick, and fourth, how the hell did he merit the special fluffy tail the first time?!"

"To answer your first question," Tamamo said, as Promestein grew tired of the banter and began pushing Albert and Tamamo towards the castle entrance. "By the time I gave Luka the special fluffy tail he'd already had a lot of experiences with powerful monsters. His first wife was the Monster Lord, a female counterpart of yours. You might even get to meet her. Looks just like you, but skinnier and lovelier without that stupid beard covering her good looks."

"Ah, so she was the monster lord," Albert mused. "I guess it would be sensible for a man to choose my counterpart over you. After all, I am the world's greatest lover."

"As for why he got it the first time, I was trying to make a point," Tamamo continued. "Alice, the Monster Lord, wasn't treating him right. So I gave him the special fluffy tail right in front of her. You should have seen her face! It was even funnier than his face!"

Albert, however, was no longer listening. The trio had entered the castle and monster girls were everywhere. They stared at Albert as intensely as he was staring at them. Some monster girls were flabbergasted at the presence, no, the very existence, of a monster male. Others got over their shock long enough to notice his still erect penis, since Albert preferred to wear no clothing.

"Don't be fooled, girls," Tamamo giggled. "He smells delicious, but that can be deceiving."

"Don't listen to her!" Albert protested. "I'm the most delicious man you've ever laid eyes on!"

Albert flexed a powerful pectoral muscle. A succubus ripped her own clothes off in one motion. A harpy fainted.

"You can have all you want once we've found out what happened to my husband," Tamamo admonished him. "Remember, we're your ride back to your world. If you're going to tag along with us, you 'll need to be useful. If you help us actually find Luka, we can stay here for awhile so you can get acquainted with the local girls."

"Isn't it possible that he's here?" Promestein asked as they walked through the halls towards the throne room.

"Possible, but I'm not too hopeful," Tamamo sighed. "If he was here, he'd be working with that other Promestein to find his way to me now that the Tartarus is closed."

"She's a younger version of me," Promestein pointed out. "it was always more likely that I'd get here before she got there."

"I'm an optimist by nature, but again, I doubt it," Tamamo said. "It's simple logic, actually. Luka couldn't be here."

"Simple logic?" Promestein asked. "I don't understand."

"Those monsters looked entirely too hungry for Luka to be here. From what Alice told me, Luka's been a walking all you can eat buffet ever since he arrived on this world."

An earthworm girl pitched forward and hit the ground headfirst when Albert flashed her a smile and a wink.

"Albert, please stop making the monster girls faint," Tamamo scolded.

"Sorry, sorry, I'll stay focused on the task at hand. Yes… the task…. At hand," Albert mumbled as a vampire girl gave him a predatory look that would have made Albert weak in the knees, if he'd had knees. "So…. Why are there no guards?"

"What would they guard against?" Tamamo asked. "The humans are no threat to the Monster Lord, and since the Monster Lord position is decided through combat, there are usually no challenges to the Monster Lord's rule."

"Ours is decided through combat as well," Albert said. "But you know how men are. They always want best 2 out of 3, and then best 3 out of 5, and then they just get sick of failing and just try a coup. We went through a dark period of hereditary dictatorship before the Fateburn line was restored."

"Well, us ladies are more civilized," Tamamo said. "Not that there aren't challenges, or rebellions, but assaults on the actual castle are very rare. And it's not as if the Monster Lord lacks protection. She has the Four Heavenly Knights, after all."

The trio made their way unchallenged through the Great Hall, towards the throne room. Unchallenged by force, anyway. The eyes of every monster girl they passed remained fixed on Albert, who was no longer so confident. As they'd gotten deeper into the castle, the monster girls' looks had evolved from wonder and longing to predatory, imagining just how they wanted to dominate and possibly devour him. Those looks were making him nervous.

Finally, they reached the throne room to find a Tamamo on the throne.

"Wow," big Tamamo said to little Tamamo. "This is so weird. If I might ask, why are you still in that form? Aren't the Ancestors unsealed on this world?"

"They are," little Tamamo replied from the throne. "But Ancestor Tamamo exists in this world with me. I don't like her very much, so I am holding onto this form for the time being. I'd hate to be mistaken for that vicious bitch."

"Vicious-?" big Tamamo started. Then she sighed. "So it's like that, is it? A never sealed Tamamo that never mellowed? I'm sorry you have to coexist with such a being."

"Our perspectives are the same, after all," little Tamamo replied. "We both find her distasteful because she reminds us of who we once were. But I'm sure you didn't come here to meet other versions of yourself. As a matter of fact, I'm pretty sure I know who you are."

"I am Luka's wife," big Tamamo declared. "It's clear to me that Luka saved this world. The expression of his power spread to our world. It was unmistakeable. And then the Tartarus closed and the apoptosis were eradicated. But Luka was never capable of that kind of power before. It almost seemed as if HE had exploded, rather than him invoking his power intentionally."

"I'm afraid Luka sought to sacrifice himself to save all the worlds," little Tamamo said. "For the first few days, we mourned him. And then, that young Promestein brought us this."

Tamamo flipped a large book at big Tamamo, who caught it deftly with a tail. "This is Luka's book!" she exclaimed.

"It is, but it's more than that," little Tamamo explained. "It's twice as big now because a whole new story has been added. The story of his adventure on this world. And then beyond. The last chapter will tell you what his ultimate fate was."

"I don't have time to read it!" big Tamamo protested. "Just tell me. Did he die?"

"He did," little Tamamo said gravely. "That was the last we saw of him. But the book, which apparently was written by Ilias, says that Ilias had stolen a small amount of his power and used that to recreate Luka on a world of her creation."

"So he is alive!" big Tamamo cried in relief. "And on another world? I must go to him!"

"I would advise against that," little Tamamo said. "Read the last chapter for the full context, but the short version is that he won't know you. That small part of him that Ilias used to remake him contained very few memories. He's in an even more amnesiac state than he was on his original adventure. Alice too has been inflicted with the condition by Ilias. She had too many versions of herself making up her personality. It was driving her mad. So Ilias has started them on their original adventure, so that they can travel that path again."

"Their original-!" big Tamamo gasped. "So… it will be a few months until Luka and Alice complete that adventure. What happens then? Ilias surely can't mean to wage a genocidal war, can she?"

"Her plans seem to be to facilitate their marriage without going that far. She's also set the power level of the monsters in that world lower, so that Luka can more easily get past them and to his destiny. Once Alice and Luka are firmly together, Ilias plans to give them that book and assist them in remembering who they really are. At that point, it should be safe for you to see them. Until then…. I'm sorry. Alice's mother is just as grief stricken."

"Alice's mother?! She's…. alive?! I must see her!"

"I'm afraid she just began a journey two days ago," little Tamamo said. "That's why I'm here minding the castle as I always do."

"Oh, I can relate," big Tamamo grumbled. "Alice and her mother weren't the first monster lords to leave me in charge while they went galavanting about. Sometimes I think I spent more time being the acting monster lord than any of them!"

"So Alipheese XV is the Monster Lord here?" Promestein asked. "Fascinating. I guess that explains why Alice isn't missed if she's over in that Ilias universe with Luka."

"Yes, two Monster Lords are galavanting about, with the upshot being that I'm still in charge," little Tamamo complained. "At least in Alice XVI's case, it's not her fault. And what Alice XV is doing is important. She needs an heir, so she's traveling with two candidates. Should those fail, she has a strong enough man with her to put another bun in her oven. After all, she is still young."

"Tamamo, thank you for this audience," big Tamamo said gratefully. "You can't imagine how happy it makes me to know that my Luka is alive and well."

"Will you be returning to your own world to await him?" little Tamamo asked.

"Actually, I think I'll stick around here for a bit. My male companion here is curious about this world, and Promestein would probably love to see her young counterpart and Sonya as well. After all, I'm guessing that if any further news comes from that world, someone here will be the first to know."

"And since Ilias would have created that world hastily," Promestein noted. "It's proximity to this one must be ideal. I should be able to locate it without too much difficulty. But I am going to want to go back to my lab and retrieve some things. If I'm going to be hanging out with my counterpart and Sonya, I'll want to get some of my specialized equipment. Thankfully my dimensional hopper has a setting to get me back quickly."

"Well, you are welcome here as long as you want to stay, my big fluffy counterpart," little Tamamo giggled. "It'll be nice to have a decent Tamamo in this world, in case that vicious version of us starts acting up again."

That "vicious bitch" version of Tamamo was outside the castle, a powerful invisibility spell concealing her and Sariela from all but the most powerful entities, and even they would have had to know what they were looking for to detect them. The two watched as Promestein exited the castle alone, holding her dimensional hopper. Promestein adjusted a couple of settings on it and depressed the button. The second before she winked out, however, she acquired two unwanted companions.

"Surprise!" evil Tamamo yelled, suddenly appearing next to Promestein and wrapping both her and Sariela in her tails as they were transported back to Luka's adopted world.