Epilogue: Abandon All Hope, Ye Who Enter Here.
Lilly's forces had entered Phase 3 of their mission. To put it bluntly, it was basically mop-up. After taking a few minutes to rest and recover, they started collecting the bones of the fallen and sealed them away. The teams were ordered to search for any skeletons that might have survived. Without Juana, the mana generator, or the lich, most had fallen on their own. Still, a handful had kept themselves together and wandered off.
There was also the collection of their equipment. The spent spell grenades had to be gathered and sent for recharge. The field generators and latex landmines had to be dug up. They were remotely deactivated so there was no danger of them going off.
While her teammates were kept to a corner, Sahar held out her staff to one of the statues and bathed it in her light. He soon returned to the flesh and freaked out once he realized he was naked.
"Gah! What happened to my clothes!?"
"Crazar, calm down. The battle is finally over, but it took a while. I'm afraid we've been at the mercy of the necromancer for nearly a year." Sahar patted his shoulder.
"A year? We've been here a year? I bet they think we're dead back home. I've got to find my girlfriend." He tried covering himself. "Dammit, where are my pants?"
"Oh, calm down. Getting angry won't fix anything." Lilly held out palm to Crazar. Darkness shot out from her palm and wrapped around his body, forming clothes made of shadows. "Those will disappear if you take them off... or if I go to sleep. I suggest you find real clothes before then."
"Come with me. We'll talk about it." Sahar lead Crazar back to the rest of their party.
Ness and Layla walked along the gallery of statues by Juana's throne. Ness's hands were still bound behind her back. She would tell Layla were each statue came from. Layla would then mark them with an abbreviation in chalk and then press her hand against them. In a moment, they fizzled out and disappeared.
Layla was one of Lilly's slaves. Her power was simply called “Warehouse”. She could store any non-living item in a pocket dimension that moved with her. Time would stand still for anything there. She couldn't store living things, but borderline exceptions were made for petrified individuals. She was why they could smuggle so many people into the Abros Region without issue.
"The naga was here when we moved in. She almost killed me." Ness huffed.
Layla marked the stone naga with a star and stashed her away.
Lilly walked up to Juana. She placed her hand on Juana's right hand and it slowly warmed up, softening as it regained it's normal hue. She then opened her hand and slid off the ring and bracelet. When she broke contact, her hand returned to stone. She then did the same for the other hand, taking her staff. Lilly then opened her hammerspace and dropped the items in.
Finishing the rounds, Layla walked up to Juana, marking her with a star before pressing her palm against the queen’s back. In a moment, the statue disappeared without a trace.
"Let's move on." Lilly snapped her fingers and the bindings holding Ness's wrists together disappeared.
"Finally." Ness rubbed her wrists.
Lilly entered the hallway, flanked by Aki and Gweyr, with Layla following behind. She stopped at Camilla the werewolf, still standing by the wall. Lilly broke the enchantment holding the collar closed and removed it from her neck. She then opened a small portal, showing five more collars just like it, and dropped it in. Next, she waved her glowing hand and the woman returned to the flesh.
Camilla blinked. "Wait, weren't there more of you a moment ago?" She looked around to find the skeleton bones missing. After a moment, she reached for her neck, feeling it with her fingers. "Finally! Now I'm going to smack that bitch."
"Juana has already been dealt with. You can go home."
"Not without my kin. She took people from my village to decorate her empty castle." Camilla moved past Lilly to the throne room door.
"I'm sending everyone back to their home village as part of my deal with the chiefs. I've already started collecting them to that end." Lilly walked off, following Shadow downstairs.
Shadow led them to the basement and through an open iron door. There, they found a large object about 4 feet wide and almost 3 feet tall. It was mostly made of metal and stone, but had a large round crystal embedded on the top, with a number of smaller crystals around it.
"Has it been fully disconnected?" Lilly looked at Shadow.
"Yes, Mistress, it has."
"Good. Layla, if you would."
"Yes, Mistress." Layla touched the mana generator and it disappeared, leaving a hole in the floor.
"A necromancer, a lich, a remote viewing mirror, a spell ring, a powerful defense item, a mid-size mana generator, a naga, and a number of spell books. On top of payment, it seems like a good haul. The question is just how valuable some of these prizes are." Lilly smiled as she thought about the possibilities, quickly pushing them out of her mind for the time being before long. "I think it's time to go. I'll send another team to do a final inspection later."
"Yes, Mistress." The four of them followed Lilly out of the basement.
***
Lilly moved a stone arm into place against the upper portion it broke off from. Her hands glowed as it fused back to the arm. She levitated a few chips back into place. Then, she finally breathed.
She tapped the runes on her bracer and scanned the body, making sure everything was in place. Satisfied with the scan, she conjured clothing for him and washed him with her magic.
The stone started to grow as Kiran's color returned. In a moment, his body relaxed and he laid flat on the table. He let out a groan as he blinked at the ceiling. "What just hit me?"
Sibyl grabbed his hand. "Juana turned you to stone and smashed you to pieces."
"I just put you back together, so try not to move around too much." Lilly took a seat and rested for a moment. Putting him back together again was mentally taxing.
"I guess I owe you my thanks then." Kiran slowly sat up, looking at his unfamiliar clothes. "I must have been out for a while now." His eyes shifted and his gaze fell on Sahar and Thalia who were resting at the side of the room. "You two! I thought you were going to defeat that vile woman! If you had done your job, none of this would of happened!"
Sibyl grabbed his shoulder. "Easy, Kiran. She would have made a move on us sooner or later. Now that Juana is gone, they've come to help out."
Ness had packed her bags and ran off somewhere. Sahar and Thalia had returned to Ravenwallow to make amends. In the time it took Lilly to piece Kiran back together, Sahar had exhausted her mana pool restoring as many of the villagers as she could, and there were still more left. Gavin had gone with the other two members of the team to Dunstan to return Juana's final slave home. Lilly had wondered what would happen with them, as the woman's belly had swollen. Gavin seemed rather close to her and wouldn't leave her side.
"I'm sorry." Sahar panted. "We didn't mean for this to happen."
"Easy. You need to rest." Thalia held her up, keeping a close grip on her.
"Was anyone killed?" Kiran looked back at Sibyl.
Sibyl shook her head. "We thought you were, but no. Some of us were wounded, but survived or were turned to stone before they could leave this world. Mistress Smith says they can all be saved."
"I'll need some time to rest. We will have to start treating their wounds as soon as they are restored."
"Where's my daughter? She must be worried about me."
Sibyl turned pale. "You'd better sit down. Jamini is... alive and well." She kept a firm grip on Kiran's arm. "You've been asleep for nearly a full year now. Things got worse while you were... gone. Juana came down harder on us than the other villages. She would punish us and the people would retaliate. Many of us were scared that she would wipe us out as an example to the others. Jamini wanted revenge. She went to go work for Mistress Smith to convince her to help us."
Kiran looked back at Lilly. He glanced at the collars around Aki and Gweyr's necks. "What do you mean, ‘work’?"
"We didn't have the money to hire an army to take down Juana. Jamini's ability... made her valuable. She entered slavery as part of the deal. Without her sacrifice, we wouldn't have been able to free Ravenwallow or the other villages from Juana's grasp."
Kiran slowly turned to Lilly. "Mistress Smith, I thank you for what you've done for me and my village, but please, return my daughter to me."
Lilly shook her head. "Sorry, but no. We struck a deal and I have kept my end of it. You're daughter will remain under my collar. I went out of my way to put you back together as a gift to her."
"I will give you everything I have, you can take me instead! Just please, set her free."
"Not interested. I sell many things, but slaves aren't one of them. She will remain my slave, with vacation days." Lilly spoke with honey in her voice. "Of course it's not like she can easily get here, even if she learns to ride a griffin."
"Can I see her?" Kiran stood up, sliding off the table.
"I'm afraid I didn't bring her with me. I assumed she said her goodbyes already. Still, I could bring her a message for you if you like." Lilly gave a friendly smile as she tried to calm him. "Take your time and think of what you wish to say. I will be here for a few days."
****
It was a few weeks later when Lilly descended into one of the deepest levels of Topaz Tower. It was her home, the second she built. It was constructed when she took ownership of Thundering Oak long ago. She later sold her mansion when she was all settled in.
Many sections had been added over the years, but this was one of the oldest. She pushed the hover cart and opened the hidden door. She then opened the titanium vault door before pushing the cart in.
On top of the cart was a massive blue crystal. Trapped inside was Juana, stripped of her clothes and returned to the flesh. She was locked inside of a deep sleep.
Standing in front of the next door was the guard of Vault 3; Nanna, Rana, and Chanda. They had dark skin and fur, a golden collar around each of their necks. They had the ears and tail of a wolf. They were quite large, standing at over 8 feet tall and with thick biceps. "Welcome Mistress." "It's good to see you again." "I see you brought a new addition for the collection." They wagged their tail.
Nanna, Rana, and Chanda were a cerberus, a descendant of both the wolf-kin and demonkind. Nanna was the right head, Rana the middle, and Chanda the left.
"Yes, I have." Lilly stroked each of their heads when they came close. "This one is called Juana Underwood. She's a necromancer."
"A necromancer?" "How fitting." Rana giggled. "Let's bring her in." They took the cart and pushed it to the final door. "I think this is our first necromancer." "Really, I thought we had one before." "No, that was just someone who dabbled in it, not a full-fledged necromancer." "My mistake."
Lilly opened the final door, dripping a little of her blood onto the lock and then pouring in her mana. It made a clicking sound for a moment before opening.
On the other side was the crystal garden, a large room lit by magic. It was full of giant crystals, each with a person sealed inside. They slept without any idea of the passage of time. Many of them were skilled magic users; elves, demons, human mages, even other sorcerers. Others lacked magic or had very little, but held other skilled positions such as craftsman, apothecary, historian, zoologist, and the like. Some were dressed, and others nude. Some, the world was better off without. The requirements to enter this collection had more to do with who you were rather than what you looked like.
The room was overflowing with magic. Nanna, Rana, and Chanda set Juana down on an empty spot between a wonderfully posed dancer and a master thief. The crystals grew at the base and bound the larger to the ground. "There you go, Mistress."
"Thank you, my pets. I think I will enjoy my time in here for a while."
The trio giggled. "I'm sure you will." "Call if you need us." "Take care, Mistress." They turned and walked out of the vault, closing the door behind them.
Lilly stroked Juana's crystal with a smile. She checked to make sure it was fully hooked up to the system. After a while, she strolled away and sat down on a couch. It had a gold frame, supported by a pair of golden women, one of them on her knees with her arms back against the lone armrest. This uniquely designed chaise lounge was padded with lovely velvet upholstery.
She took the tiara off the head of the statue. It was made of gold wires with a large crystal in the center, smaller ones on either side. She placed it across her forehead and laid back, slowly closing her eyes, her mind entering a dreamlike state.
Lilly found herself in a dungeon, a heavy oak door serving as the only visible way out. It was well-lit despite the small number of lights. It was filled with a number of different instruments, from crops and paddles hanging from hooks on the walls to the wooden horses and St. Andrew’s crosses and other such large pieces stationed around the room. Standing in the middle of the room was Juana, her arms tied behind her back with a shibari harness bound around her bare body. She lacked any sort of color and simply stared in front of her, not even breathing.
Lilly looked down at her sparkling red dress, what she wore the last time she was here. She brushed her hands down her body, her outfit shimmering like a mirage. It shifted to a red and black dominatrix outfit made of latex and PVC. It had a tight overboob corset with studs across the top, a pair of red thigh-high boots hooked to her belt with a pair of transparent black stockings under them, and a pair of long black gloves. "That's more like it."
She then turned her attention to her captive, still blissfully unaware of her presence here, and the wooden horse just a couple of feet from her. She snapped her fingers and a ring of light formed around the horse and it sank into the floor. Another snap and the ring formed around Juana, this time the wooden horse rising up between her legs, forcing them to spread. In a moment, she was resting on top of it. Then, ropes shot out from the front and the back of the wooden device and tied themselves to the front and back of her harness. Once that was done, her legs were cuffed to the base.
Lilly walked over to one of the walls, where a few rows of hooks held the smaller restraints such as cuffs and bundles of hemp rope. She selected a leather blind fold and red ball gag. Walking back to Juana, she set the items on a plate she conjured and let it float to her left. She then lifted her hand and rested it on Juana's shoulder. Color rippled through her body as her mind roused from its stasis. She then started breathing again.
Juana blinked. "What, what's going on?" She pulled on her bindings, but that only caused the ropes to dig into her skin and the wood to press against her crotch. She let out a soft moan.
"Hello there." Lilly stroked Juana's chin. "Welcome to my playroom."
"Playroom? Is that some kind of joke?" Juana frantically looked around. She glanced at the different instruments along the walls and furniture placed about the room, taking no notice of the door behind her. There was a quick look of panic across her face, but she soon suppressed it. "We were in my throne room a moment ago! What kind of spell did you use?"
"You turned yourself to stone, foolish girl. You have been asleep for over three weeks now." Lilly stroked Juana's thigh sensually. "I have an offer for you. Become my slave and I will train you. You lack allies and experience. I have both. I could teach you a thing or two."
Juana struggled. "I am a queen, you fool! Why should I submit to you?" She gritted her teeth.
"I am a queen too." Lilly giggled and nipped at Juana's ear playfully. "An S&M queen." She groped Juana's breasts, prompting a moan. "But seriously, you are in my country now. I make the rules here."
"We'll see about that." Juana started chanting, trying to use wandless magic. However, nothing happened. "What the!?"
"I told you, I make the rules here, and I say you can't use magic." Lilly stroked Juana's chest with her index finger. She had already scanned her memories. She lacked any type of skill that could free her of the chains of this world. The catch was she would have to take her out of this world to collar her.
"The other... the others will come for me."
"No one will come for you. Your slaves couldn't get away from you fast enough once freed of your collars, and I know you split from the other Necromancers long before we met." Lilly teased Juana's nipples.
Juana bit her lip. From her body language, she knew it to be true, maybe even before Lilly called her on it. She glanced down and to the side.
"So will you don my collar, or do I have to get a little rough with you?" Lilly pinched Juana's rump.
Juana shifted at the pinch and the wood's edge pressed the rope deeper. "Are you trying to intimate me? Do your worst."
Lilly chuckled. "My worst? Oh, I have no intention of subjecting you to that. No, I'm just going to have a bit of sadistic fun." She gave Juana's breasts a squeeze, pressing her own against her back.
Juana blushed. She tried to break free again, but only winced.
Lilly grabbed the blindfold and pulled it over Juana's eyes before popping the red ball gag into her mouth. Next, she put her hand behind her ass and pulled out a pair of pink candles. They lit themselves in her hands, after which she held them over Juana's breasts. These candles had a low melting point, meaning it didn't take a lot of heat for them to melt. She flinched as they splattered on her skin.
"I hope that's not too hot." Lilly giggled as dripped more wax onto Juana's skin. She watched her squirm and moan. Before long, her nipples hardened and her juices stained the wood, thanks in part to the aphrodisiac effect interwoven with the wax. Slowly, it covered her exposed flesh.
Juana would try to avoid them as they fell, angling away with each splash as far as her range of movement would allow. Still, she never knew where the wax would land next and her range was too limited, so they landed on her far more often then not, about half of those instances in the places Lilly aimed for to begin with.
When the candles had almost burned out Lilly tossed them over her shoulder. The flames went out and they dissolved into smoke. Next, she picked up two alligator clips with small weights hanging from them by thin chains. She stroked Juana's breasts before attaching them to her nipples, one at a time.
Juana tried to shake them off, but that only made the weights swing side to side. She stopped, but jolted when Lilly struck her buttcheek with a riding crop she pulled from a hook.
"Let's clean off some of that wax, shall we?" Lilly lightly struck Juana's shoulder with the crop, knocking off some of the dried candle wax. She playfully gave her a few more swats, sending wax flying with each strike.
Juana thrashed about, but moaned as her weights started swinging around. Her little fit seemed to only put more pressure on her crotch. She breathed deeply though her nose for a moment, trying to calm down, only to get another smack.
Once Juana's body was almost completely free of wax, Lilly put down the crop and slowly stroked the welts across her body. "Are you ready to be my pet?" She pressed her breasts against Juana's arm.
Juana shuddered and shook her head. While she made a clear attempt to avoid it, her movements caused the weights to swing.
"I didn't think so. Come, let's get you off of there." Lilly slowly removed the ropes holding Juana in place and uncuffed her legs. She grabbed her by the harness and pulled her off the wooden horse. "Let's go for a walk, shall we?" She tied a another rope to the one that ran between her legs before removing the blindfold.
Juana hesitated as she felt the rope tighten against her crotch. Slowly, she started to follow Lilly to the door. Soon, she moved faster to give the rope a little slack.
Lilly opened the door, flooding the room with daylight. She swayed her hips as she went outside.
Juana eagerly followed, seemingly relieved to be leaving the dungeon, only to find herself in a city street. Crowds of people walked back and forth, taking only glances at her before moving on. Her tan cheeks slowly turned red with embarrassment. "Mhmph!"
"Oh, don't drag your feet, my dear." Lilly giggled as she walked Juana down the busy street.
They walked past a group that resembled the adventures Juana captured, spawned from a memory of hers. That neko was also mixed into the crowd a bit further down. There were also a few people Lilly casually knew. They watched over Juana, gossiping something unintelligible to her ears as they passed.
After over 30 minutes of walking, they reached the town square. "I hope she didn't notice the loop. I only put so many faces into this thing." They reached a raised platform in the center of the square. She walked up the steps and pulled Juana up after her.
Juana struggled, pulling against the leash, only to moan and yield as the pressure got too much for her. Slowly, she climbed the wide steps that made up the platform, stopping on the six foot wide octagon platform. She looked down at the iron shackles laying in the middle. "Mmph." She glared at Lilly.
Lilly grabbed Juana by the harness and pulled her to the center. She thrust up a finger in Juana’s direction, causing one of shackles to jump up and lock around her ankle. She repeated the motion with little difference and the other shackle jumped into place as well.
Juana let out a muffled scream and yanked her leg, quickly pulling the chain taut. "Mmph magph!" It sounded like she was protesting.
Lilly picked up a wooden paddle with a heart-shaped imprint on it off the ground. "I’ll ask you again. Are you ready to be my slave?" She cracked a smile and stroked Juana's butt.
Juana shook her head and stomped her foot.
"That's okay. If you did, then we would have come all this way for nothing." Lilly gripped the paddle with both hands and swung it. As it struck Juana's rump, it released a pink shock wave, which soon faded.
Juana yelped behind her gag. She cried out a few more times as the strikes kept coming. She started to moan as her cheeks turned red from the seemingly endless volley. The weights tugged her nipples as she flailed about. Slowly, her juices started to run down her leg.
After two sets of 10 strikes, Lilly set down the paddle. She then pressed herself against Juana's back. Her hands moved around front and her fingers stroked her. Slowly, her right hand moved up and gave her breast a good squeeze. "That's enough of hell, for now, I think it's time I take you to heaven." Her left hand slid down the belly.
Juana closed her eyes and blushed.
The End