The Goddess of Death and Her Empress

"I didn't think it would end up like this." Nuri said quietly. Nadya nodded, and watched as Kyrie joined in on the fun, and consumed the twelve who Offered Valina. The intention to test the Shadows had changed, and no longer reflected the intended penance Lena pictured.

"I believe the Empress is rewarding them for their affection towards Valina." As both Kyrie and Lena ate each of the twelve, Kyrie let Lena lay against her thighs. She put the last core in Valina's hand.

"Take your sister back to Haven, and spend time with them." Lena said with a soft smile. "You chose your friends wisely, Valina. They did not let you down, and have assured me that your Offering was clean." Kyrie smiled and brushed Lena's hair out of her eyes.

"Valcynie. Valthyria. Valjhana. Valyria." Kyrie said each name. "The Empress will test your chosen ones in the near future." Kyrie smiled when Lena lightly swatted her.

"I do not believe that it is necessary to test them." Lena's eyes flashed and the room filled with her more potent presence over her physical one. "It is, however, necessary for them to pay the toll." Kyrie grinned.

"Agreed. Valina. Take your friends to the grove once they recover. The Empress wants to reward them with a bit of relaxation before they return to their duties." Kyrie said, and watched Lena smile sweetly.

"You beat me to it, Kyrie." She pouted a little. "Valyria, bring one of the grove hunters here. I've longed to taste that wildness I sensed upon Nuri when she was pulled back by the hook in her core." Kyrie lightly brushed her hair out of her eyes.

"You can't be too greedy, little one. Haven's energy is abundant within the Shadows, and the hunters. You need time to absorb it properly." Kyrie lightly poked her cheek. "Remember, their very essence is Haven's energy. You eat an entire body's worth each time." Lena pouted a bit.

"I'm bathed in it while we sleep, goddess. I'm surrounded by it, as it seeps from their bodies. I don't need to go to Haven to touch it, or sop it up." Lena's closed eyes opened, and Kyrie could see their depths swirl with red mists, as well as white light. Kyrie lightly tapped her nose.

"I've waited patiently for you, Lena. Don't push it too fast. I would rather wait than bring you harm." Kyrie could feel an invisible finger push her towards that choice, and realized that either her mother wanted her to slow the process down, or someone infinitely more powerful did.

Either way, both beings felt familiar, and she was unwilling to disobey their will.

* * *

"The waking elders have chosen new leadership, Empress." Sol said as she opened a sheaf of papers. "The elders believed that their time should now be dedicated to proper consideration of the goddess, and leave the tribe to the younger Elorshin." Lena nodded.

"Agreed. Make sure each of them understand the ultimate goal of the tribe, and their roles in Haven." Lena blinked as she tilted her head. "Kyrie, why does it feel like someone is waiting to see me?"

"Because there is. Gallae has sent Syl back to you. She is hungry as your essence is what feeds her now." Kyrie said.

"Then bring her in. It has been weeks since she's went away. She must be starving." Lena said. A full minute later, Syl appeared, brought in by a white mist this time. Once she saw Lena, she knelt down and bowed with her head to the floor.

Lena was thoroughly shocked at her appearance. She now looked quite frail, with dry parched extremely thin skin, and with hardly any muscle remaining. She had starved before asking for help.

"Empress. Gallae has set me to work. Comets have landed, which brings water to the area. It is still barren, but with water, and heat, there is moisture in the air now." Syl said with her head low.

"What do you ask of me, Syl?" Lena asked, now assured Syl was properly subdued.

"I hunger greatly, Empress. I have endured as long as possible, as instructed. Also, I need tools to break the stone. It will take time to turn it to dust in order to make soil though." Syl said, while Lena pursed her lips.

"Is there nothing but stone there?" She asked quietly.

"The majority is stone. It grows continuously, as Gallae brings meteors, and asteroids to merge with it. The force that holds me to the surface grows too. It is almost as strong as the force on Haven." Syl said. Lena thought for several moments.

"Kyrie, if she were to get life from Imera, just samples, the stone would not support such life, correct?" Lena asked. Kyrie thought, but heard a whisper in her ear.

"It is not yet time for life there, Lena." She said. "Syl, Lena will feed you. Return in a week. Do not hold out longer next time. You must not starve, or stress your core. You are her first servant, and must not suffer unduly. When it is time, Gallae will remake the surface properly. Right now, she's gathering the materials." Syl lifted her head, and bowed again.

"I shall obey." Syl said, without being aggressive, or full of emotion. She didn't want to make Lena upset at her, as her human nature might make her volatile, in Syl's eyes.

"Come here." Lena said. Syl lifted up, and crawled forward. Lena pursed her lips, and waited until she was close enough. She held out her hand, and with a surge of power, she lifted Syl from the floor and pulled her onto her lap.

"Empress?" Syl asked fearfully. Lena smirked, and covered her mouth with her own.

Kyrie's eyebrow lifted, but watched as Syl's throat rose up and bulged as though blown up with internal pressure. Small wisps of white mist escaped the seal of their lips.

Syl's dry parched skin recovered, and thickened. Her muscles recovered and healed. Her appearance returned to what she once had, and the bulge in her throat slowly returned to normal. Lena lifted her mouth, and a small amount of white mist escaped, only to be sucked back into Lena's mouth.

"Don't starve yourself." Lena said. "I can feed my servants, but large amounts require me to regenerate a bit longer." Syl blushed, and murmured softly.

"I am sorry, Empress. I didn't want to upset you when I made you so angry before. I treated your closest servants as food, and not as a sister of Haven. I feared you might finish..." She sniffed. "I was afraid, Empress." She said softly. Lena lightly tapped her cheek.

"You are my first servant that I support. You must be an example to others from now on. They must not be afraid that I will abandon them in the future, or can not feed them. Once a week. No longer." She said, and set Syl on her feet. Syl bowed down once again.

"Yes, Empress Lena, my goddess." Syl disappeared as Gallae took her back to her new place, while the Others within the room had gone quiet. Kyrie smirked a bit.

"What? The Empress now provides her means of life." Kyrie said. "What she said is not wrong." Lena pouted and lightly poked her side.

"It shocked them. Let them assimilate it for a while before you poke their preconceptions." Lena said, and felt Kryie's hand cover hers.

"It's best they get used to it. Who else other than a goddess can become the lifelong partner of their goddess?"