by L. A. Kelley
Internal energies stirred. The power was sluggish, though, and difficult to capture—perhaps, a residual effect of this hellish domain. A spell would be tricky to maintain. I brushed aside my anxieties. Worry was pointless. I’d hold the magic together as long as possible.
“The shield is visible only to us.” A shimmery haze floated in the air a foot over my head. “The shield is strong and powerful.” The haze solidified into a shiny metal object, circular in shape, with vicious metallic barbs studding the rim. The entire surface glistened like polished gunmetal steel. “The shield prevents discovery. No vision, no sound, no odor will escape to warn enemies of our advance.” A light danced across the metal, imbuing the surface with mystical force. A pale gray shadow spread downward encompassing the four of us below. I built the essence of the shield; stable, unbreakable, and impenetrable.
The last and most important step. Believe the lie, Peter Whistler. Believe with all your heart. “The shield is real. The magic will protect us all.”
Click. The lie snapped into place.
Amelie studied the hovering armor. “Very nice.”
I rubbed my neck. The spell took much more from me than the border around the Benoit’s property. Maintaining the magic would continue to pull on my energy reserve. “Better check the shield. Mrs. Hart, you have the best senses. Go outside the shadow and see if you detect us.”
The little dog took one step beyond the barrier. Her ears cocked. Her nose quivered. “Excellent, Peter,” she called, padding inside again. “I didn’t see, hear, or scent a thing.”
“Let’s hope Feu De L’enfer and its minions can’t either. I don’t know what kind of power of perception they have. I can’t shield from something I don’t understand.”
She nudged my leg. “Then my suggestion is not to worry at all. Let’s get moving.”
We shuffled nervously to the cave opening. The shield floated obediently over our heads, dogging every move. Once inside we paused to let our eyes adjust to the dark. The cave wasn’t pitch black. The walls held a faint trace of luminescence, enough for us to navigate safely.
Mrs. Hart took the lead, following the scent of the dead monsters. Nose to the ground, she guided us effortlessly through a series of twisty turns and branching offshoots.
“Remind me to have a word with Clovis when we get out of here,” I squawked to Amelie. “It would have been nice to know ahead of time the demon hid inside a labyrinth. We could have wandered around for days.”
Mrs. Hart froze. “Something’s coming.”
We scrambled into a shallow alcove as a snuffling growl echoed down the stone walls. Another wolf-scorpion loped into view. Padding along, the jaw hung open exposing the murderous double-row of teeth.
I held my breath. The creature would pass within an arm’s breadth. Pressed against the wall, we had nowhere to run or hide if the shield didn’t hold. The creature bounded by without as much as a flick of the gruesome head in our direction.
Amelie flashed a smile and squeezed my hand. “Good work.”
I shuffled in embarrassment. “Thanks.”
“You can play kissy-face later,” griped Esther. “We have work to do.”
“Shut up, Esther.” Amelie and I barked simultaneously.
I don’t know how long we walked. Time had little meaning on the twisty turning route. Finally, Mrs. Hart announced, “Smells and sounds are increasing. What we seek is near.”
Gradually, we humans perceived a rising din. Definitely more than one ‘something’ made all the racket. We approached an opening. Bright light spilled out while flickering shadows against the cave wall suggested the movement of many bodies inside.
Despite the constant protection of the shield, instinct was hard to fight and instinct cautioned us now to move slowly. The entrance led into a yawning cavern lit by torches. Dozens of agitated wolf-scorpions milled about in a clamorous snuffling pack.
“What’s got them all riled?” whispered Amelie, nervously. “Do they have our scent?”
“If they did,” I murmured, “we wouldn’t be having this conversation, since we’d already be dead. Maybe, they always act that way.”
So distracting was the noise, none of us heard the wolf-scorpion trotting from the tunnel now behind us. I shoved Esther aside a split second before the monster crashed into her. For an instant my hand lay outside the protection of the shield before I yanked it back in horror. The wolf-scorpion stopped and tilted the massive head in our direction. The ears pricked up. The nostrils flared, casting for an elusive scent.
My heart pounded against my ribcage as I willed the shield to hold. After several tense seconds, the creature trotted off to join the pack. Next to me, Amelie exhaled a sigh of relief.
The wolf-scorpion carried something in its jaws. Loping to the center of the room, it spit the mouthful onto the floor. The head of another wolf-scorpion rolled across the rocky surface. The pack let loose a concerted howl and closed in. One large brute flung several smaller ones out of the way. Lips then curled in a savage snarl, daring the others to approach.
“Mine!” it roared. Whimpering, the others retreated acknowledging defeat. The victor crunched into the skull with relish.
“No!” A rasping shriek rang along the cavern walls. “No one eats until the human is found and brought to me.” A fireball slammed into the feasting wolf-scorpion. The walls blazed with reflected yellow light as the creature incinerated.
Howling and cringing, the wolf-scorpions skulked away, making room for a figure striding arrogantly through the pack. The newcomer walked upright like a man, but at ten feet tall the resemblance ended there. Spindly legs bent backwards at the knee, while a familiar fiery symbol blazed on the chest. Instead of fingers, a cluster of long thin talons sprouted from the wrists, making metallic clicking noises. The demon’s mouth and nose were formed by a single narrow slit running vertically down what I optimistically considered a face. Two deep recesses spanned the top of the skull. Deep inside each one burned a brilliant flame as if you could peer right into the malignant force powering the creature.
Not that you’d want to.
Esther tugged at my sleeve. Her voice was small and shaky. “Is it…Is it…?”
“Yes. It’s Feu De L’enfer and, trust me, you don’t want to look.”
The demon grabbed the wolf-scorpion who brought the head and lifted the bulky creature with ease by the scruff of the neck. “Where are the others I sent to retrieve the human?”
“Dead,” yowled the cowering wolf-scorpion. “Both dead. No human. I bring head.” It whimpered like a frightened dog. “To you. To show. All dead. Fighting, always fighting them were, but not me. I bring. To show…”
“The human!” Feu De L’enfer screamed again, tightening its grip. The strident voice scraped like a rusty nail against my eardrum.
The wolf-scorpion choked out, “No human.” Flames shot from Feu De L’enfer’s eyes. The wolf-scorpion instantly vaporized into dust.
“Would another care to fail me?” The beam raked across the pack, blasting two more of the creatures into smoldering ashes. “Anyone?” The rest of the wolf-scorpions groveled at the demon’s feet, carefully avoiding a direct gaze into the fiery eyes.
“Scour the wasteland. Find the human. Now!”
In unison, the pack released a nightmarish howl. Bolting for the exit, they snarled and snapped at each other in an effort to be first to exit the cavern. The demon sent a few more firebolts racing down the passageway to encourage them along.
Once the pack disappeared, Feu De L’enfer strode from sight. The sound of the clicking talons faded behind a rock formation. Carefully, we all moved into the open.
“What are you going to do?” whispered Amelie.
“I’m working on the plan.”
She gaped at me, horrified. “You don’t know, yet?”
“Of course I know. I’m hammering out the last few details.”
Amelie snorted in disbelief. “You have nothing.”
“My
intention,” I blustered, “was for an idea to have occurred to me by now.”
“And?”
“Nothing has.”
Amelie muttered something in French under her breath. We rounded the formation and stopped short. Thirty feet in front of us perched Feu De L’enfer, on a throne carved from solid rock. The creature stared straight ahead, motionless and silent. The flames in the eyeballs had dimmed.
Amelie nudged me. “Do you think it’s asleep?”
“Dunno.” I responded, half-afraid Amelie would suggest kicking the shins to find out.
“The demon is alone,” she noted, “oblivious to the surroundings.”
She was right. The situation was in our favor for now. None of us knew when the wolf-scorpions would return. Invisible or not, I had no desire to stroll through the murderous pack. I’d never have a better chance to kill Feu De L’enfer. All I needed was a mystical weapon. The empty cavern held nothing—at least, not yet. A desperate plan of attack formed. “Amelie, give me your knife.”
Perplexed, she extended the hilt. “The blade won’t kill a demon.”
I scrutinized the gleaming steel. “Maybe it will, with the right lie attached.”
For a moment her hand rested lightly on mine. “Make the lie a good one, Peter.”
The wickedly sharp blade could easily slit through tough, unforgiving alligator hide, but was completely useless against Feu De L’enfer. Now, I had to believe the knife would work, more than any lie I ever told. Failure meant bloody death for us all.
I stroked the surface. If a normal knife was useless, perhaps magical modifications were the answer. “I no longer hold a normal blade. The metal is transformed and filled with enough power to kill Feu De L’enfer.” An answering tingle of mystic energy coursed to my fingertips. A tiny spark exploded from my hand and danced along the razor sharp edge. The pain was hot and biting and totally unexpected. I nearly dropped the knife before recovering. Lying never hurt like this before.
What did you expect? You never went after a demon, either. Forget the pain, sissy boy, and get on with the magic. You haven’t locked the spell in place.
I gritted my teeth against the searing burn. “The knife will plunge into the demon’s eyes and destroy them.” The spark skittered across the surface, etching the symbol of the little flame into the hardened steel. “The knife and demon are bound together. No other weapon will suffice.”
“Peter! Something’s wrong with the shield.” Mrs. Hart’s urgent warning cut into my concentration. To my horror the shiny protective surface suspended over our heads was now covered with a dull haze. No—the shield had turned into a dull haze becoming transparent.
“The shield is strong, covering us completely!” It grew dense and solid once more.
“Peter,” Amelie motioned to her knife. “The symbols are gone.”
What was happening? “The knife and demon are bound together.”
“Peter,” Mrs. Hart cried, “the shield is disappearing again.”
Oh, crap. “The shield is strong…”
“What’s wrong,” demanded Esther, anxiously.
“I have a problem with the magic. Either the shield or the knife—I can’t hold both spells. One of them has to give.”
“If the shield goes, Feu De L’enfer will see us.” The fear in Esther echoed my own.
“Human.” The harsh grating words rumbled ominously across the cavern. “I know you are here. You cannot hide from my power.” Feu De L’enfer’s eyes were wide open. My heart sank. The momentary loosening of the spell on the shield had been enough for the demon to sense our approach. Brilliant beams raked across the rocky surface in search of us. We froze as the horrific light passed right over and then as quickly moved on.
Amelie breathed in relief. “The demon can’t see us.”
“No yet,” I cautioned, “but as soon as the shield drops we’ll all be visible.”
“Human.” Flaming eyes scouring the darkest recesses. “You cannot harm me here. My rule is eternal. My power unstoppable. Behold!” The fire concentrated into a tight beam, turning a two-ton boulder instantly into a pile of slag. “Thus will all enemies fall before me.”
“Full of himself, isn’t he,” remarked Mrs. Hart. “He rather reminds me of Chauncey Edwards.”
My mouth gaped open. I stared at her in disbelief. “Chauncey wasn’t ten feet tall with fireballs shooting from his eyes.”
“He might well have been, the shameful way he treated others. He was callous and indifferent and thought he was invincible. He was, too. No one stood up to him.”
“Peter did.” Esther tugged at my sleeve. “You beaned him with a pie. He sure didn’t see that coming.” The fear drained from her voice. “I haven’t been picked on by a single bully since I got to Bayou St. Gerard. I don’t ever want to be again.”
“Join me human.” Feu De L’enfer leaped nimbly from the throne, and skulked through the cavern, peering into each shadowy crevice. “The journey to the Lower Worlds has proven your worth. I will anoint you my seneschal on earth in place of Pike. Millions of slaves will grovel at your feet. Rewards beyond comprehension will be yours.”
Amelie hadn’t taken her eyes off the creature. I once saw a photograph in a magazine of a mongoose with the same intense expression studying a cobra. “The demon keeps saying human—singular. It doesn’t know four of us entered the Lower Worlds. Despite the boast, Feu De L’enfer is not all powerful. We have our advantage. I can create a distraction long enough for you to get close.”
“Me, too,” said Esther. “I want to go home. T. Chris is waiting for me. We’re going to go fishing.”
T. Chris…right now the boy and his family were fighting for their lives against an army of possessed rats because of Pike and Feu De L’enfer. My blood boiled at the thought.
Mrs. Hart gently nudged my leg. “Complete the spell on the knife, Peter. We’ll keep the demon occupied.”
“Feu De L’enfer wants Esther,” I cautioned. “There’s no telling what the thing will do when laying eyes on all of you.”
Amelie shot me a sly look. “You think you’re the only one who’s ever told a lie? I can talk a good line myself.” At that moment the demon disappeared behind an outcropping. “Drop the shield and run. We’ll do the rest.”
Gripping Amelie’s knife, I took a deep breath. “The shield is gone.” With a slight shimmer, the shield collapsed. I bolted from my companions and scurried behind a rock.
Feu De L’enfer instantly sensed the shield’s disappearance. The demon strode triumphantly across the cavern. “Wise choice, human—” The steps came to a sudden halt. I peeked around the boulder. Emotion was impossible to read on the monstrous face, but the creature was obviously thrown off by finding two humans and a dog where only one person should have been.
Hah! Not so omnipotent now, are you?
“We hear you’ve been hunting for Esther,” Amelie announced in a cheerful voice.
Despite the initial surprise, the demon recovered quickly. “Who are you? How did you come to this place?” The eyes narrowed in suspicion. “You are not conjurors.”
“The reason is not important,” she answered tartly.
The creature sized them up. “Only the child is significant.”
The eye sockets blazed flame. Hidden behind the rock, I felt sick and helpless. Any second now, it would blast them to ashes.
Amelie held fast. “If you harm either one of us, Esther won’t help you.”
“You best believe it,” yelled Esther. “You need me to escape. If you touch my friends, I’m not leading you out of here.”
Feu De L’enfer studied the trio. Light from the eyes cast a sickly glow on their faces. “Humans…so fragile.” Contempt dripped from the words. “Shall we see how much pain is needed for you to talk? I think…” It spoke more to itself than to them. “Not much.”
“You want to take that chance?” countered Amelie. “Especially after you’ve waited so long, and are so close to getting what you wa
nt.”
The demon rose to its full height. Her words must have hit a nerve. “Speak, human.”
Amelie nudged Esther. “Go ahead. Tell the demon what you want.”
Esther obviously hadn’t thought that far ahead. “Um…a new fishing pole.” Feu De L’enfer seemed perplexed.
“And dominion over all the inhabitants of New Orleans and into the far reaches of Bayou St. Gerard,” added Amelie with an exuberant shout.
The demon nodded. A thirst for power was perfectly understandable. “Such can be granted.”
A shade of relief passed over Amelie’s face. “We have other requests.”
“Go on.” The voice boomed across the rocks.
Having no interest in the rest of Esther’s Christmas list, I sidled around to the far side of the boulder. I held up the knife. The shiny metallic surface reflected my face, dead set with determination. “I no longer wield a normal blade. Magic courses through the metal.” The steel glowed softly as the lie built.
“The magical forces are harnessed to kill Feu De L’enfer. The knife will destroy the demon’s eyes.” The spark blazed from my fingertips. I shook off the pain. Fiery arcane symbols again etched on the surface.
“The demon has no defense for my magic. I will stand against Feu De L’enfer. I will destroy the lights in its eyes. The knife will kill the demon.” I imbued the weapon with the essence of death. I felt the energy. I believed the lie.
With a satisfying click the lie snapped into place.
The surface of the blade tingled. Barbs filled with arcane power jabbed against my skin. They wanted out. I stroked the haft. Not yet, but soon.
I eased my way around the boulder. Feu De L’enfer was a good ten feet tall. I had to get to eye level. Most of the outcroppings had little in the way of hand and footholds. Then I lit upon the perfect platform—the throne. Fortunately, the demon continued to be distracted by Esther’s negotiations.
“…and then a flying pony.”
I dashed from behind the boulder. Whether alerted by the sound of footsteps or simply the sense of someone approaching, I couldn’t say, but Feu De L’enfer was suddenly on guard. The creature swung its head in my direction.