'Huh? Did she just call me Astaroth?'
'But that's not my name.'
'My name is…'
'Wait, that's not even important right now.'
'What's this about demons, vampires and supernatural beings?'
'Just what the hell is going on here and why did someone say we'll be going through a portal soon?' Aster looked behind him, which was where he had heard the person's voice come from.
He wanted to take a look at where they were heading, but Aster's eyes widened with shock when he saw large horns and wings attached to four winged bicorns, which were pulling the carriage.
The Coachman sensed his gaze and turned around, causing Aster's heart to stop beating for a millisecond as he locked gazes with the female jack-o'-lantern smiling at him.
She turned back to the road ahead when a magical portal appeared midair, and then the winged bicorns pulled the carriage into the portal.
Within seconds, they had left the dark, nocturnal atmosphere of the human realm and arrived in the bright, sunny world of Evermore, a realm of all things supernatural.
Meanwhile, Aster stared out of the window and noticed the weird birds flying in the air.
These birds were unlike any other bird he had ever seen, but after looking closely, they looked quite similar to the pterodactyls he had seen on a discovery channel a few years ago in the human realm.
And since they were awfully close to the carriage, Aster could see how dangerously huge these dinosaurs were.
His heart clenched with fear as he moved back from the window, but one of the creatures had noticed his presence and its eyes immediately lingered on Aster.
The moment it noticed Aster's weak presence, it swiftly swerved closer to the carriage's window and Aster froze in fear as he watched the predator draw closer to him, but to his surprise, the creature suddenly stopped advancing.
The pterodactyl had noticed an ominous aura oozing from a certain spot in the carriage.
It was far more intense and terrifying than any other aura it had come across.
So, the massive beast turned to the source of that aura and its eyes widened in fear when it realized how dense the aura was.
It let out a cawing sound like a crow and within seconds, all the other pterodactyls vanished from the vicinity.
Meanwhile, Aster's heart was still beating at a rapid pace as he wondered what could have spooked such predators so easily.
He turned to Vivian, silently seeking answers, but she simply smiled at him, and this puzzled him even more.
'Did she scare them away?' He thought to himself, but Lily's voice brought his attention to her.
"Mom? Where are we?" The little girl asked as she noticed the carriage flying over the thick, dense forest and approaching a large medieval-like community.
"We're in the demon continent sweetie, and this part of the continent is ruled by me, so that makes me its queen."
"Really?"
"Mmhmm. Mummy is a Dragon Queen." Vivian said while puffing her chest out with pride to emphasize how amazing she was, and the five-year-old girl's jaw dropped in cute surprise.
"So, does that make me a princess?" Lily's eyes shimmered with awe as she waited for Vivian to nod her head in confirmation.
Seeing this, Vivian couldn't help but chuckle at how cute her little Lily looked at the moment, so she hugged her lovingly while saying. "Of course, my little princess. Since I'm the Queen, that would make you the cutest princess in the world."
Vivian tapped Lily's nose and rubbed her cheeks against Lily's, causing the little girl to giggle before looking through the window.
"Can I see them?" Lily asked as she pointed out the window.
Since they were really high above the ground, it was impossible for Lily to see what the demons in this world looked like, so she wondered if Vivian would allow them to take a closer look at the demons down below.
Realizing this, Vivian turned towards her Coachman. "Hallie? Lower us down a bit, please."
"As you wish, Your Majesty."
The female jack-o'-lantern nodded in understanding, then she glided the carriage down, allowing Lily and Aster to have a better look at the demons as they went about their daily lives.
Upon getting closer, Aster and Lily could see demons with various horns and different skin tones.
Some had wings and tails of various shapes and sizes, others had sharp claws and teeth as they laughed and conversed with one another, while a few were preoccupied with arm wrestling out on the streets.
But since the carriage had been lowered so that Aster and Lily could have a better view of the demons, the demons down below were also able to see the massive carriage flying above them clearly, and every single one of them recognized whose carriage it was.
"Oh my, isn't that Her Majesty's royal carriage?" A female demon asked her friend.
"Yes, it is. But doesn't this mean Her Majesty has returned?"
"Of course, dummy. Why else would her carriage be here if she hasn't returned?"
"Oh, I'm so happy Her Majesty is back. It's been so long."
"I've missed Her Majesty so much!"
"Me too."
"Me three."
"Me four!!"
"Welcome back, your Majesty!!" A fifth demon screamed at the top of her lungs and every other demon folk followed, male, female, and even children.
"My Queen!!! Welcome back!!!"
"Welcome back, Queen Vivian!!"
"We love you, Queen Vivian!!" A couple of little demon children screamed and waved joyfully as they chased after the flying royal carriage.
Vivian and Lily noticed this and the two of them smiled before waving back in return, but since the carriage was still a few meters above the ground, no one could actually see them waving back at them.
Meanwhile, Aster was filled with even more questions and it was becoming more difficult for him to keep track of all the questions and new information swirling around his head right now.
But then Vivian noticed the puzzled look on his face so she assured him with a pleasant smile. "Astaroth? I know you have a lot on your mind right now but I promise to answer every single one of your questions once we arrive at the castle. Okay?"
Aster neither replied nor nodded at her words.
He could sense the sincerity in her words but since Vivian had called herself a Dragon Queen, Aster couldn't help but feel tense and alert as he waited to find out what Vivian had to say to him.
Some time passed and the carriage finally arrived at a large, majestic castle, situated on top of a magnificent floating island.
The carriage landed in front of the castle's entrance and Vivian stepped out of the carriage before stretching her arms wide and inhaling the relaxing air of her home.
But the doors to the castle were instantly flung open when the dragon Queen's presence was felt, and two beautiful female ghosts hovered into view before rushing out of the castle with tears streaming down their faces.