A Tune of Demons Box Set: The Complete Fantasy Series

by J E Mueller

  “You made it further than I expected,” I heard Lliam say as we trotted down a forest path.

  I glanced at the spirit floating lazily beside me. It was a little odd watching him pass through trees, so I turned to face forward. “I was wondering when you would show up.”

  Lydia glanced over at me, and seeing no one, shrugged. “Spirit problems?”

  “Lliam’s back. I knew he was interested in traveling with us, but he hasn’t shown up until just now,” I replied simply.

  “Why does he want to follow us? Sure, some demon fighting might be cool to see, but there’s got to be some better things to do with his free time,” Lydia questioned.

  “Shows what she knows,” Lliam huffed.

  I ignored him and responded to Lydia instead. “He had mentioned he wanted to try and help. Spirits have been able to gain the attention of humans before. An odd gust of wind might be a good enough warning to save a life.”

  “Oh yeah, Key mentioned that helping her, before didn’t she?” Lydia nodded, satisfied with the answer.

  “It would be more useful if someone else could hear me,” Lliam sighed.

  “Maybe,” I replied to him, “but aside from a fight, what would you say to the living, anyway?”

  He considered this for a moment. “Don’t fuck up, dying sucks.”

  “How eloquent.” I rolled my eyes.

  “What did you expect? Blessed born and raised,” Lliam said proudly. “The fight is the most important part, but damn did dying suck.”

  “Is anyone not born Blessed aside from Lee? Come on, that’s all I hear,” I muttered.

  “Several, but it is a much smaller portion,” Lydia replied.

  “Have you gotten much reading done then?” Lliam asked curiously. “I know I suggested against it, but let’s face it, that was never going to work.”

  It was true. “I finished most of book one. It would appear that there are several possible gifts I could have associated with this magic. I may not be able to guide spirits, though. So, helping someone cross might not be possible. We’ll see as I work through those books.”

  “Damn it. It was too much to hope for.” Lliam muttered several extra choice words.

  “I didn’t say hope was lost, I just said it wasn’t guaranteed. What even happened that prevented you from crossing to begin with? I mean if I do have that gift, it could be the same problem anyway.”

  Lliam moved to float in front of me. “It’s a bit of a story.”

  “We’ve got some time before we meet up with the others,” I replied. Did he actually have some answers now? He didn’t when we first met.

  With a sigh, Lliam glanced around. “I suppose it doesn’t hurt to tell. After all, it can’t kill me.” He grinned at his own joke before continuing. “It took several moments for me to realize I was dead. The intense pain was gone, and the cold that seemed to encompass my entire being left. I felt warm, and normal for the most part, if not a little shaky. After a moment I opened my eyes to see my body.

  “Now that was a surprise, but it confirmed why the pain and suffering were at an end. Instead of a healing hand bringing me back, I saw my angel guide standing several feet away.

  “But I waited for a moment. My friends I had been venturing with hadn’t given up on me just yet, and it felt wrong to leave. There were curses and screams before finally one decided to start the song… When they all joined in I knew that was my cue it was time to go. Vallen’s Lullaby made my death too real. I was hardly ready to leave but there was nothing more for me to do here. So, I walked over to my guide, took his outstretched hand, and for a moment ascended into the sky.

  “With a sharp whack, I fell back down. It felt like a hand had swiped me back down to the ground and I stared up, confused. My guide sighed, having already expected this result. He explained no one had recently been crossing successfully, and they were looking into it. Everyone had hoped it would suddenly end, but that seemed unlikely. They have just as many answers now as they did then.” Lliam laid back, hovering lazily in the air and looked at the sky. “For immortal beings of good they sure are not all knowing.” While his tone was at ease, I noted how tightly he clenched his fists.

  “So, it has to be something going on directly with the spirit realm,” I mused, remembering what I had read. “Neither angels nor demons have access to that realm, so it would make sense that any problems coming straight from there are unknown.” I tried to consider other possibilities but nothing came to mind.

  “I was starting to think that too, but the spirit realm is overfull of confused spirits. I’m hoping to eventually find some more of the old guides and see what they know,” Lliam commented.

  “That is actually a great idea. You may be able to solve this with their help.” I hoped it would be that easy.

  Lliam seemed to think otherwise. “I’m sure it’s going to be several steps back and forth. It doesn’t seem like it can be just a spirit realm problem. That would affect the spirits of the realm, but it only affects the good going to heaven.” He moved to sit angrily, crossed legged in the air.

  “I thought you said no one could cross…” I replied carefully. Only affecting the good meant a completely different matter.

  “I had believed as much to be true. You can cross, at any time if you like, to the other side.” His expression turned from bored and at ease to angry and disgusted. “Forget that. I worked too hard slaying demons to ever join their fray,” Lliam spat.

  “Okay, that does not sound like not just a spirit realm problem.” I glanced over at Lydia. “That sounds exactly like a demon problem. But how the heck could they prevent anyone from crossing to heaven? I think the angels would have noticed that much.”

  Lydia glanced my way, confused, but listening. I’m sure she had been keeping notes on what I was saying the entire time.

  “Which is why I think it’s both a spirit world and mortal world problem,” Lliam concluded. “But half the spirits I’ve met are desperate and useless messes. I need information, and I think those books will have more helpful information than not.”

  “Once this adventure mess is cleared up I will get back to reading,” I promised him.

  He grumbled and swore for a moment before agreeing. “Fine. I’ll return soon. I’m going to continue my search.”

  With that, he was gone. That quick conversation was more tiring than I expected, but I wasn’t going to leave Lydia out of the loop. I repeated everything as best as I could, knowing we’d be meeting up with the other group soon enough.

  “That’s pretty damn troubling,” she said without glancing back at me. “I don’t have any idea what could cause that to happen. Even looking at myths… No one has ever been prevented from getting where they need to go by angels or demons. It’s always some unfinished business junk. Which makes the spirit guide thing seem like a good form of magic, even if it’s uncommon.” Lydia just shook her head a moment before continuing. “So, we’re going to hunt some demons that might easily have an upper hand we don’t know about. I don’t feel like telling the others would help either.” Lydia seemed torn in her thoughts, but I didn’t have any words to comfort her.

  “Well, if Key can break her curse, I’m sure we can solve this problem right? I mean it was done recently. It’s not old magic, so there have to be answers. They just might be harder to find since it is a new, never before seen, sort of problem,” I replied.

  “I hope you’re right,” Lydia replied.

  I hoped I was right, too.

  8

  As we stopped for a quick lunch, I found myself wandering the woods. It felt good to stretch my legs, though nothing was saving my mind from wandering. Damn those demons. What could they have possibly done to alter the balance so horribly that those destined for the heavens couldn’t cross? My fists shook with rage as I continued to walk. I was finally getting somewhere, learning about my gift and now this? I wouldn’t be able to try anything additional I learned until this crossing mess was solved.

&n
bsp; Pausing, I realized I had wandered much further than I had intended. The forest was much less dense here and covered in hundreds of wildflowers. I could see an old cemetery a short distance further. As I wandered closer, I could see just how much of the forest had taken it over. Headstones were cracked or broken to bits. Moss and ivy covered anything worth reading. What town abandoned their dead like this? I glanced around and saw no noticeable footpath. Maybe something destroyed the town long ago. I knew nothing about where I was and nothing good about where we were heading.

  “You look lost.”

  I spun around to see Marella standing casually behind me.

  “What on earth are you doing out here?” I asked, feeling confused.

  She shrugged. “I could ask you the same thing, but I already know the answers.”

  “How could you possibly know?” I crossed my arms. There was no way.

  “You’re traveling to Ashgrove. There’s a fairly constant clash between lesser demons and Blessed. Occasionally, a few higher level demons will join the fray to give the Blessed a good scare, but on the whole they aren’t too interested in that at the moment. That could change if they learn you’re there and what you are.”

  Her words sent a chill down my spine. “What do you mean?” My voice was soft, even to me.

  “Dearest Tella…” she said, walking in a slow circle around me. “I have no easy way to tell you this but you are in a lot of danger if you keep seeking answers.”

  “What risks do you know of?” It seemed as if everyone needed to warn me as of late. I wasn’t sure how suddenly everyone had this information. Marella did love her secrets.

  “They are hunting down anyone who can help spirits cross because you’re the only ones who can stop them. Even as untrained as you are,” Marella replied simply. Her smooth and steady voice didn’t skip a beat. “If something were to point this out to them, all attention would turn toward you. None would stop until you were dead. Now, there’s no easy way for them to know this, but I worry about you.”

  “Why does a demon worry about a mortal? That doesn’t make much sense.” I didn’t know how else to respond. This was going from concerning to frustrating.

  “The circumstances of my birth are the same as any angel or higher being. I was born on this side. I can choose to make of it what I will,” she supplied. The surprise must have been obvious from my expression. “Yes, demons can be born, in a way. We’re not all just sinners in hell.” Marella shrugged as if this should be common knowledge before continuing. “I’d ignore any spirits if I were you. I’m sure you’re practiced enough with that.”

  “That shouldn’t be a problem,” I agreed. I couldn’t help but feel like something bad was inevitable. “Why tell me all this?”

  Marella rolled her eyes at me. “Maybe someday you’ll know. Anywho, ta-ta.” She waved her hand and was gone. No smoke or trick lights, she just simply vanished.

  As I tried to process all that had just happened, I felt Lydia’s magic meet mine. I had wandered far and was gone too long. She was likely worried and I quickly headed back.

  We met halfway.

  “Where did you go?” Lydia asked, just as concerned as I had envisioned.

  “I wandered farther than I had realized,” I replied honestly. “Then I found an abandoned graveyard.”

  Lydia looked surprised for a moment before something clicked. “Oh, right. We must be near old Little Brook. Disease wiped most of it out some time ago and the survivors relocated. I know some Blessed that won’t go near there. They claim it’s haunted.”

  “That would be cool to see,” I replied, kind of excited. “If... no when. When we get this crossing thing fixed, I could easily fix that.” I nodded approvingly at the thought.

  Lydia laughed. “It’s probably just stories, but that would be cool.” She led the way back to our small camp and the horses.

  “I did run into Marella again,” I said. There was no use not mentioning it.

  “I thought she just hung around our hometown graveyard.” Lydia glanced at me, confused, but kept walking. “What on earth would she even want?”

  “To warn, me actually,” I replied as I relayed the facts. “She confirmed that demons are hunting anyone with my gift very actively right now. If they were to catch wind of it, I’d be an instant target.”

  “How would they catch wind of you? It’s not like they see wandering spirits. Do they?” Lydia looked at me for answers.

  “From what I read, angels and demons can only see a soul as it leaves the body. If it gets stuck in limbo they are none the wiser,” I replied. “Really, I can’t think of how they’d know. There’s no easy way.”

  “Good.” Lydia took my hand in hers. “One less thing to worry about, though I guess the warning is appreciated. However weird the source is.”

  I nodded. Marella had given me a lot more information than usual. She had been born on that side. I couldn’t imagine what that life and upbringing would even be like or how she had become what seemed like a fairly decent being.

  When we reached the meetup place, the other group was already setting up camp. The trio nodded toward Lydia but gave me a curious look. One I was used to. The Blessed could sense one another with little issue, so in moments like this, I stood out like a sore thumb. It had stopped bothering me some time ago, though. I dismounted my horse and went about getting her ready to be brushed down while Lydia did the chatting.

  “Lydia, well met!” the guy closest to her called as she walked up to them.

  “Ryan, it’s been some time. I heard we were meeting two people.” She nodded toward the two behind him. “Guess something changed?”

  Ryan had a scar across his cheek, but aside from that he looked like any other twenty-something. He had brown hair, brown eyes, and travel-worn clothes with the standard guild cloak thrown over them. The black lily that was normally sewn onto the sleeve was instead gray. Was that the only difference in the factions? A simple color change? I’d have to ask later.

  “About that.” Ryan nodded toward his comrades. “Ryan Bennett over there was on his way elsewhere, but demons overran his crew. So, he’s with us until this is over.”

  “Two Ryans?” Lydia scoffed. “One of you is bad enough.”

  “Hey!” the other Ryan called. “Not fair. I’m worlds different. I mean, just look, his face was beaten with an ugly stick and I got the looks of a god.” He stood tall and proud.

  While he did look better than average, it was still the same brown hair, brown eyes, and way too much arrogance for me to do more than roll my eyes.

  “Whatever. You’re going to be Bennett until this is done,” Lydia decided. Without another word to the slightly insulted demon slayer, she turned toward the girl in the group. “Sorry you’re stuck with this lot.”

  “Depending on the night, I am too,” she agreed as she went to shake Lyda’s hand. “Liza.”

  “Pleasure. Please tell me aside from Bennett’s mishap there hasn’t been much in the way of demons,” Lydia asked.

  Liza moved her dark hair out of her face. Her braid was nearly falling out. “Well, there aren’t as many now. We took down plenty. Now they’re just ashes.” Her tone was neutral.

  Lydia and she locked eyes for a moment. “That bad?”

  Liza nodded. “We haven’t cleaned up scum in this area in a while. Maybe five or six months? It shouldn’t be a surprise.”

  “It’s not.” Lydia gave a reluctant sigh. “I was just trying to be optimistic. We had a less than exciting journey here so I thought maybe it wouldn’t be so bad.”

  “That’s lucky,” Ryan stated, a bit surprised. “I would have thought you’d have hit a few on the way. Didn’t you pass by Little Brook?”

  “Yes.” Lydia nodded firmly. “No trouble whatsoever.”

  I watched her carefully. I knew Lydia didn’t trust Marella ever since I had told her about her more or less demonic origins, but it seemed she wasn’t interested in mentioning her at all. Maybe Lydia was waiting for
more information as much as I was.

  “Now that is a surprise,” Liza said, genuinely amazed by the idea. “Someone always has trouble near there. Abandoned areas are always breeding grounds for fear.”

  “Last group I know took down eight,” Bennett agreed.

  “I think Mara’s taken down twelve once near there,” Ryan considered.

  As they bantered about the demon hot spots in the area, I thought about our journey. It had been dull. Usually, we’d run into at least two or three demons on any adventure no matter how short. Could Marella have had something to do with it? No. That wouldn’t make sense. If she was hiding out, why would she slay her own kind? Or maybe she could ward them off by some other means. There was too little I knew about her. We had spent years and years talking, and I felt I couldn’t even write a page about her.

  “So can your friend over there even fight?” Ryan asked.

  I hadn’t been paying attention to their conversation and wasn’t sure how it had turned over to me. No matter, Lydia was already ready with a reply.

  “Better than you, no doubt,” she said without hesitation.

  “Yeah?” Ryan snorted. “She’s not even Blessed.”

  I chuckled. “It’s going to be such a shame when I show you up without that fancy angel magic.” I moved to get Lydia’s horse brushed down.

  “Yeah, right,” Ryan scoffed. “Holding a sword isn’t the same as truly slaying demons.”

  Suddenly, I was behind him and tapped on his shoulder. He jumped three feet and almost fell over Lydia who was laughing too hard to care.

  “Oh, I’m sorry. Were you expecting a slow comeback?” I snickered.

  “How did you move like that?” Liza asked, awestruck.

  “My normal magic lets me move as fast as a demon.” I smiled sweetly. “It’s not a terribly uncommon gift, and it’s tremendously useful in a fight.”