Desaray was actually quite stunned. She did not expect Cinder to ask such a question. “You want to be my friend? Didn’t you want to defeat me?”
    
    “I…. That was before I realized that you were a good person. After speaking to you and then going back to my lair, where it is dark and lonely, I realized just how horrible of a life I have been leading…. I don’t want to lead a life like this anymore. I do not want to be a demon queen anymore. I just want to live a real life. The life I have long lost….” Cinder’s words grew fainter and fainter towards the end as she fidgeted with her fingers as she spoke. She felt a little embarrassed since she was basically begging.

“We can be friends.” Desaray suddenly answered, causing Cinder’s eyes to brighten as she looked up at her.

“But…. You will need to do one thing. I can not fully trust you yet. This is because, well, you are still a demon queen by all rights. If, for some reason, you begin to flare up and try to burn my city to ashes, then I will need to have a contingency plan to take care of it. This ice needle will live in your heart.” Desaray held up a tiny ice needle. “It will live in your body. If, for any reason, this ice needle melts or if you begin burning the city, I will activate it, and it will kill you from the inside out. If you can accept this, then you can stay in Serenity. You can live here and experience what a true life is.”

Desaray did have a soft spot for Cinder’s story. She did not know about the other demon queens, but Cinder had a hard life from the start, an unfair life. While she could not let her roam freely without some kind of safeguard, she was willing to give Cinder a chance.

“I accept!” Cinder’s eyes began to fill with tears. Her lonely life would soon be over. She would no longer need to be stuck hiding from the outside world. She hoped from now on, she would have a place where she truly belonged.

“Good. Also. If you could help a friend of mine with fire magic, that would be great. She is from my world and was turned into a fire elemental. I was hoping you could teach her a few things before she dives into a dungeon.” Desaray knew she was coming out of nowhere with this kind of request, but who better to teach Yi Ling than the Demon Queen of Cinder herself?

“No problem!” Cinder smiled as she wiped her tears. She then grabbed Desaray’s hands and smiled brightly as she said: “I hope from now on we can become good friends. I will do my best to win your trust and show you that I do not mean you or your kingdom any harm. This, I promise.  I will work hard to be accepted!” 

“You do not need to work too hard. The people in my kingdom are all good people. As long as you are kind to them, they will be kind to you. And Cinder. Do not let people take advantage of you, either. You want to turn over a new leaf, but that does not mean you have to say yes to every request, okay?” Desaray was worried about this. Cinder still had a child-like mindset that she was afraid she would get taken advantage of.

“I will be careful. I will not do anything I do not wish.” Cinder smiled brightly. Her first true smile in many many years. 

“Then let’s go. With the other demon queens around, it will be nice to have a more strong backup. For now, you can stay in my house. I think it would be perfect for you since it’s normally frozen because of me.” Desaray scratched her head. “Ling is also staying there, so it will be good for the two of you to get together as well.”

“Don’t worry, with me around the Demon Queen of Darkness and the Demon Queen of Death will be much easier to deal with. Both are not good with light and fire.” Cinder replied as she floated up in the air. 

“Then let’s head to Serenity, then.” Desaray flapped her wings and flew off over the wall. Cinder quickly followed behind them. Desaray had already placed three ice needles inside Cinder while they were talking. With this as a precaution, she was no longer worried about Cinder causing issues. She could easily deal with Cinder now if needed. She just hoped it never came to that.

- - -

In a large mansion about the size of a castle, an aged elf sat behind his desk and looked at the man in armor kneeling on the floor. “How is it? Is the dirty beast kin city heavily guarded?”

    “Sir, no. The city itself seems to be Rain Ford city from the Beast Kingdom. While large, it does not have a large fighting force. With our elite soldiers, we should be able to deal with it.” The Man in armor replied.

“Good, see to it. I want those dirty beasts under collar and chain and out in the surroundings, building up the new land so our people can live good lives in this new place.”  The aged elf ordered.

“As you wis….” The man in armor did not get to finish his words when the building they were in began to shake. 

    *Bam!*

The door to the office swung open, and another elf in robes rushed in. “Brother! That beast kin city is rising into the air!”