Othrys goes to war

The Citadel stood, massive and commanding, over the city of Othrys, and Aires couldn't have been more impressed. For how dissonant the combination of skyscraper and tree sounded, the execution was breathtaking and magnificent, helped by the magic that bent straight steel, flat stone, and hard plastic into beautiful, swooping supports and delicate accents and decorations. Such a level of needless ornamentation would have been completely impractical for the towering structure if the building itself hadn't been slightly alive and capable of crafting them itself. As a result, the entire thing had a level of extravagance to it that would have taken tens of years for normal craftsmen to construct.

Aires blew past it all though, striding through the open central gate and into the superstructure without hesitation. Not only did he have things to do that were more important than admiring his new home, but he knew its occupants were far more beautiful. Stepping into the entrance hall, he was surprised by the number of doors and passages leading further into the tower in every direction and momentarily wondered how he was going to find his way when the bark and beam walls shuddered and split. Within a dozen seconds, a clear path had been created for him that he could only assume led to exactly where he wanted to go.

"Thank you," he said quietly, feeling just a bit weird thanking a building. The Citadel seemed to be grateful though, if the small flowers that grew along the corridor was any indication. Coming to the conclusion that he shouldn't overthink things, Aires began walking deeper and slightly higher into the fortress. He could sense the passage closing back up behind him and idly wondered how interesting living in such a structure would prove to be.

The last of the passage closed behind him as he stepped into a relatively small throne room, at least compared to what he was expecting. Instead of having the capacity for several hundred people, it looked like it could only fit a few dozen comfortably. It gave a more intimate feeling that Aires found he liked, though not as much as the final sight that greeted him.

Standing at the head of the room were three thrones, of which only one was occupied. Decorated with lush green leaves and winding vines, a chair grown of living wood held the sumptuous body of Aphrodite, crafted to hold her and highlight her beauty in the most perfect way. She sat with a natural and intrinsic elegance that Aires simultaneously wanted to worship and pull down to fuck like beasts. He didn't do either, but from the way she was looking at him with her body barely covered, she wouldn't have minded.

Spread before the throne were the numerous women Aires had, for lack of a better word, collected in his conquest. Grace, smiling peacefully with a hint of pride in her expression; Vivian, sitting next to Aphrodite and letting herself be pet with her tail wagging; Rebecca, standing in a shadow with eyes rooted on his muscles; Venus and Cecilia, both of them together and lurking around, throwing glances at the three thrones and wishing a little that one was for either of them; Zoe, much taller than anyone else thanks to her large spider body and eight long legs; Evelith, who had gone ahead earlier and now kneeled at the base of the largest of the thrones.

That throne was large and solid, unornamented and plain. Made of grey stone and steel molded into shape, it was imposing, indominable, and authoritative. He made a mental note to customize it later, but would settle for just sitting in it for the time being. Swiftly crossing the hall, he stepped up onto the dais that held the royal chairs. Sitting down without ceremony, Aires gave himself a moment to settle on the throne before turning to his beloved with a smile. She returned it and took his outstretched hand for a moment, before they both looked down on the first members of their court.

"Zoe, what is the condition of your forces?" the god asked, his voice echoing nicely in the chamber. The drider woman stepped forward and bowed at the waist.

"They are many and ready to fight, with more on the way. They are simple soldiers, but formidable. Sharp claws and infectious fangs. I also have Broodmothers available to replenish our forces with the help of the defeated." The spider smiled at the last bit, clearly delighting in the idea of turning their enemies to their advantage in the most carnal way.

"Good. Have them ready at the wall closest to Olympus, we are going to hit them before they can react. Rebecca, I want you to hang back and use the shed blood to your advantage. You're our surprise trump card, I want you powerful enough to decimate a platoon by yourself." The vampiress didn't say anything, just nodding to confirm. "Grace, how successful was your search?"

"Extremely, my god. You have an order of loyal priestesses at your beck and call, all eager to worship you as you deserve." Aires looked at her expressionlessly for a second before talking again.

".....okay.....you're going to get to explain that when we're not under siege. How will they benefit us in combat?"

"Their prayers and adoration will empower you, my one Lord, if you find yourself needing extra power," Grace said, just a little quieter.

"Hmm, that will be useful. Good results, even if I question your methods. Focus your powers on long range bombardment and destroying any heavy weaponry you see. You, Zoe, Rebecca, Cecilia, and Venus will accompany me against Olympus. I expect every one of you to use the full extent of your powers." He looked specifically at Cecilia as he said that, and the red-haired demon slut felt a thrill of excitement at being given permission to run wild. "We'll have a growing number of bimbos and futanari to deal with stragglers and accelerate our domination once we get started as well. As always, converting our enemy into our ally will be our greatest strength. Once Owen has results and we know what we're up against, we will begin."

"You've forgotten about us, dearest. You should know better than that," Aphrodite said, gesturing to Vivian and Evelith along with herself. Aires didn't say anything for a second, mostly to steel himself, before answering.

"You three will be staying here." He immediately regretted his words, his blood freezing at the look his queen leveled at him. He very nearly got down an begged her to forgive him, but **** himself to stay sitting.

"Reconsider," she commanded.

"I have. I'll not risk you."

"There is nothing out there that can hurt me."

"And our baby?"

"I would die before I let anything happen to her."

"Since that's what I want to avoid, you're staying here."

"You need my power," the queen said, trying a different angle.

"You're more powerful here and the entire city is under your control. You'll shape the battlefield from afar."

"The city is under my control, Olympus is outside it."

"And if they get in, we'll need someone capable of handling them on their own. I trust only you with that."

"Is it too much for me to ask to fight with you?"

"....yes....this time, yes...please stay here, Julie. Please." Aphrodite stared back at him for another handful of seconds until, with a hand on her stomach, she turned away and nodded. "Thank you," Aires whispered, so quietly that only she would be able to hear. A silence stifled the throne room with its somber aura until a door banged open and Owen came strolling through, a dazed Yvonne trailing behind him.

"What up, boss? Finally got your fancy ass chair?"

"What have you learned?" Aires asked, cutting straight to the point. Owen picked up on that and cleared his throat a little, cutting the bullshit.

"Yvonne has been very helpful and helped me to confirm and learn a few things. First, things we knew. One: those carrying Naomi the Traitor's strain cannot spread it to others. Somehow, that part of the virus has been suppressed, meaning Naomi is the only source. Two: the longer those infected with it, simply called Traitors from now on, go without climax, the stronger they get. This seems to extend to every aspect of physical and magical ability, though different traits are emphasized more on an individual basis. Upon climax, the accumulated power is typically lost entirely, though Yvonne says there are some that only see partial loss. Additionally, some Traitors are apparently able to draw power in faster by various means, like edging or having desire focused on them. Generally, the more sexual attention is directed towards them without climaxing, the faster power is gained. Fortunately, those capable of this don't seem to be very many in number.

"Second order of business: these weapons." Owen lifted a partially disassembled version of one of the guns the soldiers-turned-bimbos had been originally carrying. "Basically Contagion-powered railguns, very fancy but surprisingly simple. Unfortunately, that means there will be a lot of these in use. And they pack a punch too, very effective against rank and file Infected. They do use special ammunition for most of their destructive power though, so if we could deplete that, we'd have fewer losses. They've also entirely taken the place of the other weaponry you'd seen previously, which makes sense given a gun is almost always better than a sword.

"Third and finally: Yvonne has been very forthcoming with some very helpful information about the structure of the enemy army, most importantly being the location of Naomi and Olympus Command. She's offered full cooperation in return for not being **** into brainless whoredom." Yvonne cowered behind Owen and Aires couldn't deny he was turned on by the strong and dominant-looking woman standing timidly at the foot of his throne. "She asked me to plead on her behalf, but I'm going to let her do it instead." Yvonne's panic was obvious, but Owen just moved out of the way, leaving the brunette alone before Aires. She clearly had no idea what to say, but the god took care of that for her.

"I don't really care why you betrayed your Lady, as you call her, and I don't have time to pretend I do. Instead, I have a condition for you. If you fulfill it and tell me everything I need to know about Olympus' army, I'll leave you just as you are and set you free." The woman didn't say anything for a few moments, keeping her eyes down in quiet deference. Aires wondered what Owen had done to so thoroughly tear the confident woman he had seen in the woods apart.

Nothing showed that better than Yvonne going to her knees and bowing sharply to the king on his throne. Her breathing was unsteady and her heart raced, details Aires' supernatural senses didn't fail to miss. Still, he said nothing, waiting.

"I-I ac...cept," she finally choked out, tears constricting her throat. The only part of her that moved was her shoulders, shaking in her evident anguish. Aires let her vocal betrayal hang in the air before snapping for effect and willing a 3D map of the city and its outskirts in their current state to rise out of the floor.

"I will hold you to that later. For now, why don't you show me exactly where Naomi is..."

"Owen, how is it coming?"

"Dude, I barely started. If you want a superweapon, it's going to take a little time." Aires winced at the irritated tone broadcasted by the Alpha man directly into his head. Mental communication had a lot of benefits, such as being able to converse instantly over the miles that separated the Wall from the Citadel, but also had a few downsides. A measure of emotional transference was once of them.

"So long as it's ready if we need it, take all the time you need." Aires heard and felt grumbling in response before he closed himself off from the man, letting him work. Owen's work wouldn't have any impact on the opening of the battle anyways.

The occupants of the city had all been assembled at their new king's behest, standing closely packed against the Rose Wall. On the other side was Olympus and, more importantly to the vast majority of them, fresh, untouched partners to fuck. Very few cared why they were gathered, so long as they didn't have to restrain their lust for much longer. The vast minority that could conjure a semblance of caring were easily soothed into compliance by the encouraging whispers of the Contagion.

Only a few groups were set apart from the rest, such as Zoe's contingent of monstrous spiders and Grace's Devoted and priestesses that made up her Order of the Divine, and had any specific instructions. The general Infected were only directed to get in and do what they did best: fuck. Cecilia and Venus were leading that effort, eager to twist, pervert, and corrupt as many souls as they could get their hand on.

Standing at the back of it all, Aires telepathically checked over every last detail. Not wanting to draw extra attention to himself, he kept himself at his usual height of a bit more than six feet. Among the diverse body types of the Infected, he was largely unremarkable and easily missed unless someone was looking for him in particular. Which he couldn't discount the possibility of, given the mysterious disappearance of the two soldiers in the woods outside. It was entirely possible that they had made it back to Olympus by unknown means and had told them about him in detail.

'No sense in wasting time then,' he thought and directed his focus towards Aphrodite sitting at the center of the Citadel of her own making. She was a radiant existence in his mind, overflowing with magical might that he could easily sense even at this distance. It was soothing, despite the circumstances, and did more for his confidence than it maybe should. Knowing his love had his back covered and, maybe more importantly, from a safe distance soothed him considerably. Knowing that, he felt the task of eradicating Olympus would actually be manageable.

"Go." Aphrodite heard him and the enormous wall in front of him shuddered and split apart, a thousand tendrils opening a wide gap in it while also snapping out to grab and restrain anything it could reach. Machinery and vehicles were instantly ruined and smashed, while their operators were held tight until infectious thorns pricked their skin and they became the first to change sides, the voice of the virus commanding them to betray their comrades. Overwhelmed with unbelievable lust, they barely hesitated.

"Be careful, my love," he heard Aphrodite whisper to him and a rush of viral power coursed through him. For a scant moment, he thought he heard something else, a whisper of something right on the edge of his consciousness. Words didn't register, but a sense of approval and pride was what stuck with Aires when that moment passed. It was unnerving, but the circumstances didn't allow further contemplation. Instead, Aires looked outside the Rose Wall of Othrys and saw Olympus, massive and waiting. Waiting to be conquered and subjugated.

With a wordless mental command, the many Infected surged forward.