Demonic Pornstar System

The garden no longer echoed with venomous pressure or contempt. Instead, the atmosphere had shifted into something much stranger. It was intimate, even cozy in the most uncomfortable ways.

Talia sat nestled in Tessa's lap, still sniffling softly as the negotiations continued. Even though she was practically the same height and build as the woman cradling her, she somehow looked small. Tessa gently stroked her hair while humming a lullaby.

Across the table, Diaz had yet to say a single word. His soul might've fled the plane ten minutes ago. His empty eyes watched Talia, the renowned smith and respected leader of his guild, do a complete 180.

Meanwhile, the other side of the room wasn't faring much better.

Vaelira, Jack, and Sasha had given up all pretense of subtlety, their heads ping-ponging between Kaiden and Talia with increasing disbelief. Watching a full-grown guild leader negotiating contracts while curled into another woman's lap like a doll. She had short-circuited their expectations.

And at the heart of it all sat Kaiden.

He didn't raise his voice nor was he gloating or acting with mockery considering the unbelievable situation they were in. He simply had a pen in hand, scribbling down notes and speaking in calm, even tones.

"So," Kaiden spoke up while tapping the work-in-progress contract with his pen, "Valhalla's Sinners will receive twenty percent ownership in Runewoven. Silent shares, meaning we won't vote unless the decision is major enough to drastically alter the future of the guild. We won't interfere otherwise. But this also means there will be no restrictions on receiving performance-based dividends. We are not your fighters nor decision makers, thus we will have no obligations to keep the lights going."

Talia sniffled, still red-eyed. "You'll be hated by the shareholders for this… You know that, right?"

Kaiden offered a shrug. "They don't have a choice. Nobody's buying shares in a guild that's about to get torn apart by Association penalties, so they can't get their investments out; that ship has already sailed. All they can do is grit their teeth and pray we save what's left of their investment."

She blinked and then stared at him as if he wasn't listening correctly. "Did you not hear what I said? They'll hate your guts. You think just because they're not awakened that they can't give you hell? These people have ties. Influence. Friends in very annoying places."

It was Aria who responded instead of Kaiden. "Let them try. We've got ties too, and, more importantly, we don't plan to stay weak for long. If they want revenge, they'll have to act fast."

Her silver eyes shone brightly for a heartbeat before Nyx took over with her trademark sly smirk.

"Unfortunately for them… the government's watching us very closely right now. I doubt they can do much harm. By the time the heat dies down, making us much more vulnerable, we'll be far too strong to be annoyed by such flies."

Talia opened her mouth, then closed it. She knew they came with a strategy, but the woman didn't expect this group made up of total rookies to have planned so far ahead.

Instead, she turned her head and glanced at Tessa for support, who brushed her bangs back soothingly.

"Tali, you should make sure to include a clause saying they can't sell the shares for a long period of time. A decade or so should suffice. Of course, that's not counting selling to the already established shareholders."

Tessa kept her tone casual, maternal, sounding as if she were advising her daughter through her first breakup. "If they can sell the shares to anyone at any time, you set yourself up to be stabbed in the back. At best, they'll just cash out the second the guild's value goes up. What if the buyer is a pain in your butt? And as I said, that's the best outcome… What if they strike a deal that goes against your wishes using their shares as collateral?"

Talia's eyes widened. She gasped, immediately shooting a sharp, betrayed glare at Kaiden, as if he were already halfway to selling the shares to some shady conglomerate.

Tessa continued. "Chain their investment to the success of Runewoven. Make it so the only way they win… is if you win."

Kaiden didn't flinch at the powerful woman's glare. He merely shifted his attention toward the woman who spoke words he didn't like to hear as he gave Tessa a long, entirely unimpressed look.

Tessa only smiled at his expression. "What is it? Did you take me to be a brainless… What was it called again? My younger sibling kept using the term…"

"NPC?" Luna helped out with a sigh.

"Right. NPC. And more than that, we girls gotta look out for one another when it comes to dangerous guys like you, mister..." she quipped.

The way she said it almost made it sound like he was flirting with both of them, but everyone in the room could feel the true meaning behind her words. Tessa understood Kaiden. Understood what drove him and how immensely driven he was. She understood that, if left unchecked, his ambitions might chew through everything in their path, making her and Talia's guilds unfortunate bystanders.

But she also understood something else: aligning with him, tethering him, might be the smartest decision she and Talia would ever make. His support, silent or otherwise, could be the lifeline Runewoven, and as their newly gained allies, Nova Circuit needed. And if she didn't tie that lifeline down with rules, it could strangle her just as easily as it could save her.

Luna scoffed suddenly. "We assumed you were just a rather mediocre leader. You couldn't even keep Vaelira in check, and your whole guild almost got nuked by the Association."

Tessa didn't bristle at the comment. She simply offered Miss Storm Valkyrie a smile that was half-sincere, half-wry. "All I can do is try my best."

Vaelira's jaw tightened.

Her eyes darted between them, Kaiden, Talia, Tessa, even the Valkyries chatting at the negotiation table she wasn't truly invited to while her name floated casually around the room. She'd been at the center of attention all her life, and now she wasn't even the topic, just a footnote in a conversation she had no proper seat in.

She fumed silently with her arms crossed. Yet no one looked her way.

Not even Luna, as she kept dissing her as the nasty bitch of the desert dungeon clear.

And that, perhaps, stung more than anything else.

But with this, the pact was established.

Now all that remained was the gain the 'go-ahead' of the other decision makers of Runewoven, but, as Kaiden and his girls said, they didn't have much of a choice.

Talia was busy rereading the contract draft.

"Kaiden Grey is to receive a 20% non-voting equity stake in Runewoven…"

A long sigh escaped her lips as she moved to the next clause.

"Shares may not be sold to third parties for a period of ten years, neither by current shareholders nor by Kaiden Grey, barring resale to existing shareholders or with an 81% approval rate from the remaining shareholders. Unauthorized transfer results in nullification and automatic reversion to treasury control."

Talia tapped her pen against her chin. This protected them from Kaiden's potential harmful actions, but also protected him from the other shareholders deciding to just cut their losses and sell so that they could create a new guild of which he had no part of.

"In exchange, Kaiden Grey agrees to a soft-partnership clause, pledging to consider Runewoven and its affiliates as first collaborators for future ventures."

He wasn't committing to anything too heavy, just giving them priority if their offers made sense.

She flipped to the final page.

"A neutral mediation clause shall automatically trigger upon unresolved disputes, granting arbitration power to a third-party guild recognized by the Association."

That one came from Talia, having already been through way too much corporate bullshit in her miserable time as guild leader. This clause protected her from such annoyances when it came to Kaiden.

And then the final dagger:

"If Runewoven's valuation increases by 60% within five years, Kaiden Grey shall receive bonus equity dividends and accompanying advisory privileges as a performance incentive."

He wouldn't just gain wealth if they rose, he'd be rewarded for it with more influence.

Talia rubbed her temples. 'He's not here to break us. He's here to bet on us… and make damn sure the odds fall his way.'

It was, in her honest opinion, an airtight deal.

Painful for the guild. Risky for her reputation.

But also, probably, the smartest move they could make right now.

A bitter pill to swallow.

A dangerous ally gained.

A high-stakes gamble that, if it paid off, could not only return Runewoven to the path of growth but also maybe even evolve them further.

She exhaled.

"Now all that's left is convincing the bastards- I mean others…"

…

The ringing of Kaiden's phone tore through the quiet atmosphere of the bunker's lounge area.

He answered. "Is it done?"