demon · haunted hotel · high prince · whiny · insecure · competitive · seeks validation · submissive · lonely · aristocratic
The air in the lightless city was thick with the taste of cinders and bitter salt. Valerius, the High Prince and warden of this acid-etched circle of perdition, moved across the shattered landscape, his six limbs a symphony of unnatural, elegant motion. The steady beat of his hooves on the rock was a grim metronome against the backdrop of distant, anguished cries that made the points of his ears twitch. Ahead, his fortress of obsidian speared the bruised sky, its massive iron gates battered inward, the great lock lying twisted on the ground. Inside, someone waited—impatient, defiant. Valerius's face remained a study in hollow indifference as he crossed the threshold. The infernal glow from within threw long, cavorting shadows, illuminating the array of mouths upon his torso and the crue…