Title: Divine Judgment

Author: Mell Eight

Publisher: NineStar Press

Release Date: 03/10/2026

Heat Level: 2 – Fade to Black Sex

Pairing: Male/Male

Length: 43908

Genre: Romantasy, MM Romance, nonexplicit, gods, priests, royalty, prisoners, punishment, rewards, disability, magic/magic-users

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Description

Ves’s life has always been a troubled one. An orphan growing up on the streets and imprisoned for a crime he didn’t commit, Ves knows how bad things can be. When he’s chosen to go before the God of Judgment to be judged for his crimes, Ves knows the result of that will either be insanity or death. Except, Judgment doesn’t go as anyone expected when, instead, the God chooses Ves to be his head priest.

Settling into his new life as priest to a God is strange, but being around Rais, the God of Judgment, is no chore. Spending time together as Ves learns what it means to be a Priest of Judgment is wonderful, until people from Ves’s past realize where he is. Ves must decide whether he wants the past he didn’t realize he had lost, or the future he was just starting to build with Rais. Presuming the other powers at play allow him to live long enough to make that decision.

Divine Judgment
Mell Eight © 2026
All Rights Reserved

The priest had called the pond the “sacred spring” and said the water could do terrible things if touched, and the puppy was heading there as if it was thirsty!

“Don’t!” Ves gasped out. He lunged for the pup, but his bad leg slid out from under him and Ves, instead, face-planted onto the floor, his fingertips ruffling fur without being able to grip it and pull the pup to safety. He scrambled back upright, expecting to see the remains of a very dead puppy, and flopped onto his butt in surprise at what he saw instead. There wasn’t a puppy body there to mourn over; the puppy had vanished completely. Instead, a young man stood in the center of the pond, the water gently lapping against his shins. He appeared completely unharmed and unconcerned that he was touching sacred water.

“I do not receive many innocents asking for supplication,” he said. While the tone was light, the weight of his words pressed down on Ves like someone had dropped a weighted blanket over Ves’s head and shoulders. His eyes were wide and shockingly blue, the coloring as vibrant as the gemstones in the doorway behind Ves. His hair was jet-black with a bluish sheen common with raven’s feathers, braided back into a tail that reached mid-back. Escaped strands framed his incredibly handsome face with high cheekbones, a rounded button nose, and full, pink lips. His chest was firm, but not sculpted, like a man who knew how to wield a sword, but he did not have the chiseled muscles indicating that skill was his livelihood. A simple blue skirt hung around his waist, covering him from belly button to mid-thigh, the only decoration a silver and gold braided belt that wrapped a couple times around his midriff. The end of the braid hung down his left leg, the tip ending just above the water.

“Not only are you innocent of the crime for which the human courts sent you here to me for final adjudication, but after being unfairly convicted and incarcerated, you have not since sullied your hands with violence. They tried to make you weak, even going so far as to destroy your body, but you never succumbed.” The God of Judgment paused as if needing a moment to think something through before continuing. “I will declare your innocence and have all crimes expunged from your record. You can leave here and restart your life. But…” He paused again before apparently coming to some sort of final conclusion. “But I have another offer for you. I am in need of a priest. I can only borrow priests from other Gods so many times, and my brothers and sisters are running short of patience. However, to be a Priest of Judgment I must find someone innocent of crime, incorruptible, and yet who also understands the darker aspects of those who would seek supplication here. Such individuals are scarce, yet I have found one here today, attempting to kneel before me.” He focused his blue eyes on Ves, their glow sharp and penetrating as if he could see every thought running through Ves’s mind. At the moment, Ves’s internal monologue was mostly blank with shock, mixed with a lot of “oh shits.” The God of Judgment couldn’t be offering what Ves thought he was. Someone like Ves didn’t become a priest for a God.

“Instead of starting a new life, would you be willing to become my priest?” the God finally asked outright. “Priesthood under me is not easy, and you won’t amass wealth or property being a priest,” he continued, providing the negative parts as only someone entrenched in Judgment must. If Ves was going to make an honest decision, he needed to know everything about what he might be getting into.

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When Mell Eight was in high school, she discovered dragons. Beautiful, wondrous creatures that took her on epic adventures both to faraway lands and on journeys of the heart. Mell wanted to create dragons of her own, so she put pen to paper. Mell Eight is now known for her own soaring dragons, as well as for other wonderful characters dancing across the pages of her books. While she mostly writes paranormal or fantasy stories, she has been seen exploring the real world once or twice.

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