As Agri descended, moving through the ranks of demons, the effect was instantaneous.
The quiet diligence faltered.
Demons hauling stone and packing earth froze, their eyes drawn to the walking, breathing symbol of their master's favor.
Their expressions were a potent mix of raw envy, a tinge of fearful reverence, and outright worship.
She wasn't just a favored subordinate; she was marked. She was his in the most primal way possible: in the way and laws of hell's ancient culture.
Her position had, in her single display, eclipsed everyone else's.
Eyes then flickered, searching for the other favorite.
Blair emerged moments later; her posture stiff and her face masking her fury.
Her body was clean.
Her skin, though flushed, bore no glistening marks, nor any possessive bruises for all to see.
The contrast was devastating.
Where Agri was a publicly showing her hierarchy, Blair was trying to not express her rage; the demons noted it, a silent understanding passing through the horde.
A new hierarchy had been established not by decree, but by the most ancient and undeniable proof of all.
Agri, with every shaky, proud step, was broadcasting her exalted status, and every demon who saw her understood it on a gut-deep, instinctual level.
She was Master's woman now, and she was making sure everyone saw.
An odd parade took place.
In the moral vacuum of the place called hell, where pride was born from power and devotion was measured in the surrender of the soul, Agri's walk was not one of shame or disgusting over-sharing, but of noble blessing.
Adam's seed, pearlescent and shimmering with faint demonic energy, dripped down her inner thighs, tracing paths over her pale-blue skin.
She moved with a languid, hip-swaying grace, with her head held high. The faint, musky scent of their breeding clung to her like the most expensive perfume.
A smug, victorious smile played on her lips.
Reluctantly, she ascended to the base platform of the obelisk, the control pedestal humming with latent power.
The envious gazes of the demons lingered on her retreating figure.
Her boastful desire not fully satiated, but for now, it would do.
Adam was already there, his back to her, his focus entirely on the intricate web of runes that spiraled across the dark stone.
His fingers traced the grooves with a scholar's intensity, his mind working to find the precise point where their work had been interrupted.
He had noticed Agri's proud, 'dripping' parade from the corner of his eye, but had allowed it.
She was, for now, his favored pet.
Her boasting was a natural, useful consequence of that favor, a public declaration of his power and her place within his hierarchy. A way to show his attitude towards the demons; to show that he was willing to give better positions in his budding territory.
Practicality was a devil's virtue.
Thinking thus far, Adam looked at the still dirtied Agri with a slight frown.
The platform was a place of work, of precise magical runes, not a place for such... biological accolades.
His commanding gaze, lifted from the runes and locked onto Blair, who stood a few feet away, her body tense, trying to not comment or react to Agri blatant, smug stares.
"Blair," Adam's voice was a whip crack in the silent air that instantly obtained her attention, "Clean her up. I will not have this platform stained," His tone was devoid of any emotion, only demanding expectation.
The command was a fresh slap to her pride.
Her first instinct was to deny in rebellion.
To be forced to tend to her rival, to wipe away the very evidence of her own defeat... it was a humiliation.
Her fists clenched, her knuckles white, and for a heartbeat, it seemed she might defy him.
But the brand on her soul, the deep, insidious need for his approval that he had so carefully cultivated within her, flared hotter than her pride.
His earlier promise of reward a goal.
"Sigh~" A low breath escaped her.
Defiance was unthinkable.
Obedience was the only path; seeking to be enveloped by his embrace.
With movements of stiff, suppressed rage, Blair approached Agri. The pompous look on her cum-stained face made Blair want to smack the bitch.
Reluctantly, a faint, heat haze shimmered around Blair's hands as she called upon her fine control over fire to precisely and cleanly vaporize the 'residue' from Agri's skin and the stone floor beneath her.
She was reduced to a cleaning maid.
Agri watched Blair work, her yellow eyes slitted with feline satisfaction. As the warm, dry energy began to flicker over her thighs, she let out a soft, mocking sigh.
"Mmm, so thorough, my dear sister~" She purred, her voice dripping with false sweetness, "You always did have such... deft hands. It must be so frustrating to be so good at cleaning up my messes, so I must 'thank you' for your kindness~"
Blair's jaw tightened, but she didn't retort.
She focused on her task, her expression a stony mask, every second of the process a form of torture.
The heat from her hands trembling slightly at her words were the only sign of the inferno raging within her.
Once Agri was clean, and the platform pristine, Adam gave a curt nod. His red eyes glowing darkly as he 'saw' the chaotic emotions and sins within their bodies.
It was like a rope that only got tighter the more one struggled.
Everything made more sense the more he uncovered about this magical, insidious branding that devils naturally inflicted other beings with. As to why devils would have hordes of demons who cared not for death, fighting the enemy even if they perished in the process.
'Yet again, a fiends life is tied to their soul, not their body… if only there were a way…'
"Return to work." Adam said after shaking off his earlier thoughts; it was too early to think of such matters.
Blair breathed a sigh of relief as the shift in the atmosphere was immediate.
The tension of moments before was replaced by the sharp focus on the demonic inscriptions. The feeling of Adam having his hands on their wills faded; as Adam's meticulous observation on their souls was gone.
Feeling relieved, Blair began to carve and fill the runes with a renewed, almost violent intensity. Her movements were swift and exact, each stroke a silent scream of dedication to serve him.
Agri, however, was slower to respond.
The intense pleasure of her earlier reward had left her lightheaded, her body still humming with a powerful, lingering aftershock.
Her movements were languid, her focus hazy, as a dreamy smile still lingered on her lips as she fumbled with her tools.
For now, the weight of the work fell on the shoulders of the fiercely motivated, Blair.
Regardless, the portal's completion inched forward, fueled by envy, devotion, and the absolute will of the devil who commanded them both.
The final hours of the hellish day were spent in a state of profound, focused silence.
The encounter of the 3 devils a mere after thought at this point.