Sinners' Kingdom #1: The Book of Lust (Complete)

27

"What. Else. Do. I. Need. To. Research. Asmodeus?"

"Oh. Is that how you'll call me when you're unhappy with me?" He licked his lips. The tip of his tongue melted from its forked shape to its pointed one with the quick sweep. "I rather like it. Then, as a reward, a hint to help you along? The hierarchy of the Kingdom of Hell is something you should familiarize yourself with, and quickly. Once I take you to our future kingdom, we'll have to conquer droves of our enemies so I can seat you upon our throne. And yours will be right in my lap, my queen."

"So just generic educational texts on Hell. I can do that. Nothing specific to Princes, and it shouldn't raise suspicion. Fine. Then that should be enough for now. Sarina's coming back in an hour, so we eat and then we go." I sat on my bedding on one side of the small wooden floor table Sarina had brought. The first spoonful of the broth was halfway to my nose so I could give it a testing sniff, when the thought occurred to me. "... Do you even eat? Normal human food?"

"I can. It would never be as nourishing as sustenance from my native realm, but humans can create some impressive curiosities." He leaned forward and stood, parting from the wall with unreal, cat-like grace. My eyes wouldn't leave him as he walked over, large frame looming even after he sat back down, joining me on the other side of the tiny table. "You should have my share. I'm not quite desperate enough to take it myself, and you require all the strength you can get. Though I can't wait to see you take food and drink in Hell for the first time. You'll never want anything else again."

"Nice try. Humans can't eat food from other realms without consequence."

"Yes. Humans." His lips parted slightly as his smile widened, the barest gleam of sharp white teeth teasing in the dimness. "The day is coming, my Sable."

He always had to get the last word, didn't he?

Fine. I let him have it. This time.

***

Unexpectedly, the 'private library' was considerably bigger than I thought it would be. It was no Library of Congress, but from wall to wall, shelves of books occupied the square room. I ran my fingers over the tops of the books as I passed between the rows, checking for any film of dust, but the upkeep of this place was meticulous.

There. There. And... here, too. Things on basic demonology, on location spells and the nature of clairvoyant abilities such as dowsing, scrying, divination through tea leaves, haruspicy, anthropomancy. I recognized some of these books from my grandmother's library in our old home... I wished I had been more diligent about my studies while I had the chance, if only to feel closer to her now. A lonely, heavy stone settled in my stomach. If she were here, she would tell me exactly what to do next, knowing every step to take with confidence. Meanwhile, here I was, flying by the seat of my pants. She would turn in her grave to find that I'd contracted myself to a Prince.

Well, only one thing for it, then. I simply needed to figure out a way to lawfully terminate the contract and free myself. Better get to it.

I returned with a stack of books so high I couldn't see straight ahead and had to gingerly navigate by peering around it. A lone table at the center of the room with bright lanterns was the perfect spot for some studying. I'd found texts on every subject I needed, but also on dream walking — might as well. To better understand Lust's powers and how to counter them, that was a good place to start.

Speaking of which, where was he?

My wrist tingled, an icy thrill shooting through the symbol to spread around my forearm.

A second later, a familiar head leaned back out of one of the farther rows, and Lust stared sideways at me with a wide smile.

"You summoned me, my love?"

"No."

"But you did. I felt it. And what does my lady have need of me for?"

"Nothing. I just wanted to make sure you're not making any trouble. Don't go off on your own."

"But of course. Where else would I be, if not with you?"

Oh, please.

Despite my annoyance at his constant suaveness, I filed the exchange away in my list of things to study when I had the time. Summoning, he had said, and there was no mistaking the foreign power that gripped my wrist and made me shiver. If what he said was true, then this was yet another aspect of the contract spell I had neglected to take into account. A master-servant contract had symmetry in its nature, so that could mean Lust could 'summon' me as well under certain circumstances. He could already locate me through his dream walking and stalk me that way, but to be able to get me to come to him? I hoped he had only meant 'summoning' figuratively, and not magically. Maybe it just alerted him when I looked for him, stopping short of forcing him to answer.

I spread the first three books open to the chapters most pertinent. Dowsing for magical auras, history and the nature of dream walking and communicating through other planes, and an extensive record of the history of the Kingdom of Hell. I absorbed things better and focused longer when I could jump from topic to topic instead of poring over only one subject. Besides, in case I was interrupted, it was better to learn a little about a lot instead of potentially, fruitlessly, concentrating on something that might be no use at all.

... It sure would be inconvenient if Sarina had already reached out to the Coven and reported me. They would have already told her the truth about what I'd done and who Lust was. If so, any second now, imprisoning seals might erupt all around us, jailing both Lust and me until the proper authorities arrived.

I really hoped not.

***

The King of Hell is not comprised of only one personage. At all times, there are several purported 'Kings' and 'Queens' who vie for power over one another, and although there is usually one more dominant than the others, every competing power keeps one another in check. There can be as many as two or a hundred warlord-like figures of power in Hell, with the kingdom being most stable when the number of rivals is lowest. As of the time of this writing, the dominant power is Baal, who proclaims himself the Head of the Infernal Powers, competing with ones such as Paimon and Beleth as well as at least twenty other minor rivals.

The Princes of Hell are powerful enough to contest for a quasi-ruling seat of their own. Perhaps counter-intuitively, the title itself has never been hereditary nor does it offer positional power; there are also no responsibilities conferred with it. Rather, the unique titles were long ago granted — unofficially — by others in acknowledgment of each Prince's strength. Indeed, any individual so-called Prince is often on par with many contending Kings, if not stronger. As of the time of this writing, the seven Princes of Hell have all held this unofficial rank for centuries or even perhaps millennia, with Lucifer, Prince of Pride, being the most veteran.

Most of the Princes are direct progeny of powerful Kings, who seek out magically strong consorts and concubines to procreate with to strengthen their armies. Ironically, when a particularly powerful offspring is born to them, one potentially strong enough to usurp the parent upon reaching adulthood, a King will often cull their own offspring to prevent this. Therefore, Princes are rarely, if ever, aligned according to their own parentage. Indeed, they are often the most direct threats to their sire or dame.

What then, one may ask, truly makes Princes distinct from contender Kings? Other than being in possession of such unique monikers, the other idiosyncrasy unique to these seven demons is their common enmity. Rather than competing for true dominion of Hell as a contender, they often target one another instead. A great and surpassing rivalry both binds and divides the Princes, trapping them in a never-ending conflict that serves contending Kings well. In this way, Princes are hardly their rivals for the Throne of Hell. They are at best peripheral dangers in the race for royal authority, though one must wonder what they could accomplish if they were to set their sights upon the summit rather than each other.

< For an in-depth examination of the Great Culling by Mammon, Prince of Greed, and his distinctive enmity in particular with Asmodeus, Prince of Lust, see Appendix G. >