by Joe Jackson
Kari chuckled; she’d seen kwarrasti on rare occasions in her prior life, but she never got the chance to interact with them as a people. “Did she leave before the Apocalypse?” she asked.
“I think so. I think she went back home to her people in case the fighting spread to their homeland. I haven’t heard from her for about twelve years now.”
Sonja emerged from the bath chamber, and once she went back into her bedroom, their mallasti companion made her way to the lavatory. Their mallestrem host left without a word to the other women, and once Uldriana finished with her bath, the four women got ready to take to the streets of Rulaj. Kari resolved to have a good breakfast in the city before they departed for Saristor. Uldriana agreed to find them a little place to have a hot breakfast, and then to find a store where they could resupply.
They left the hostel with little attention from Uldriana’s bedmate. The mallasti girl led them along the streets, which weren’t crowded, but had a good number of people of the various Mehr’Durillian races, either working or on their way somewhere. Rulaj was a fairly large city even compared to DarkWind or Solaris, but it lacked the feeling of overcrowding that so often typified the larger cities back on Citaria. The architecture and inlaid artwork continued to impress Kari and her friends, and Uldriana was happy to point out some of the finer details that the elestram craftsmen put into their work.
Kari found she looked at the “demons” differently now. It was still hard to believe that her Order – and indeed, everyone else as well – could be so wrong about the various peoples of Mehr’Durillia. To consider them enemies because of their invasive behavior was one thing, but as Kari considered her people had long thought of them as demons when such might be nowhere near the truth, it disturbed her. How many times had Zalkar loaned Kari his power to defeat these people, and yet they might not even truly be demons? If the serilis-rir weren’t demons and the people of Mehr’Durillia weren’t demons, it meant that Kari’s Order was poorly named.
If everything Uldriana had told them was true, then it seemed like a cruel trick: that these people had been conquered by demons, and yet they were treated like the aggressors rather than the victims. Kari took some comfort in the thought that those people of Mehr’Durillia she had hunted across her two lives had been trouble. She had never hunted a mallasti, valiras, elestram, or erestram that hadn’t been causing trouble or taking lives. Those she found on Citaria were agents of the demon kings, sent to kill or try to find some way of bringing their evil lords to other worlds to conquer. At the very least, it was not as though Kari had ever just kicked down the door of some beshathan’s dwelling and killed it without cause.
That brought another thought to Kari’s mind: how many of the supposed “demon kings” were actually demons at all? Uldriana had all but confirmed that Asmodeus, Baal, Koursturaux, Baphomet, and Abaddon were actual demons, but Kari had to wonder about the others. Emanitar may have literally gotten into bed with one of those who had killed Be’shatha, but he didn’t seem like a demon. It left Kari to wonder what was the truth in the cases of Morduri, Sekassus, and especially Celigus Chinchala. Was the old demon king who helped the Light forces win the Apocalypse a demon at all?
Kari blew out a sigh and took in the sights of the city around her more carefully. The elestram architecture was so unlike anything Kari had ever seen before, but there was a wonder and majesty to their artistic prowess that she couldn’t help but appreciate. For most of her life, Kari had thought of elestram as little more than bothersome wizards and assassins who made their way to Citaria to cause havoc. Now, she could plainly see that like with the mallasti of Moskarre, there was so much more to the jackal-folk that Kari had never had any indication existed. Their artistic and architectural prowess was complemented by the ability to create wonders of advances in plumbing and machinery. True, Kari had seen indoor plumbing from time to time in various places around Citaria – most commonly the palaces of monarchs and nobles – but not to the extent she had experienced it at the hostel the night before.
Kari glanced at their guide, expecting the girl would perhaps have a little extra spring in her step, or at least a smile on her face rather than that impassive expression. If her intimacy with the mallestrem innkeeper the night before had any such effect on her, though, it didn’t show. She seemed almost ashamed when she let any emotion escape that impassiveness, and Kari didn’t miss it. While Uldriana was distracted looking at something, Kari glanced over her shoulder at Sonja and nodded toward the mallasti girl. Sonja made a face that seemed to indicate Uldriana wasn’t happy, just as Kari suspected.
“Did you enjoy yourself last night?” Kari asked while the four women walked along the bright, sunny streets. The smells of cooking breakfasts wafted out from many of the homes they passed, and Kari was glad Uldriana was leading them to a café or similar establishment for their own morning meal. The hostel they’d stayed at had no kitchen or food service at all, which had forced Kari and Uldriana to go out and get dinner the previous night.
The mallasti girl regarded Kari for a few moments before she replied. “I suppose I did,” she said with a shrug, which seemed uncharacteristic for her. “In all honesty, it was more painful than I expected. I found I enjoyed it very little on account of that.” She looked at the ground, but then her eyes came up to Kari. “You are a mother; did you find it painful your first time?”
Kari stopped and met the girl’s gaze evenly, but from the corner of her eye, she saw that Sonja’s jaw had dropped open. She held her hand up to her sister-in-law. “It’s all right, Sonja, she doesn’t know,” Kari said. She sighed lightly and answered, “More than you’ll ever know.”
Uldriana and Danilynn were both confused by the responses, both Kari’s and Sonja’s. Danilynn clued in after a moment, but her reaction was subdued, as though she wasn’t sure what to do or say. Uldriana, too, finally caught on, and her eyes wandered the ground, as if some words of apology or comfort might be written there. “I have misspoken; please forgive me,” the mallasti girl said.
Kari waved a hand. “Not your fault,” she replied. “Come on, let’s find some food.”
They continued on their way, and Uldriana blew a long sigh from her canine nose. “I hope I have not shamed my family; our people are not allowed to take a mate or consummate our love until we have reached thirty summers. Though, given where we are headed and the risk of death, I thought perhaps I might not find another chance to experience it.”
Kari considered that; it explained things a little better, as Uldriana didn’t seem impulsive at all. Her behavior the night before had seemed a little out of character. “All I can say is if you go home with a pup in your belly, don’t let your mother blame me,” Kari said, which finally drew laughs from her friends and the mallasti girl. “I know you didn’t believe me when I said it in your village, but I’ll do everything I can to keep you safe. I made a promise to you, and to your mother, and I keep my promises.”
Uldriana stopped and met Kari’s gaze evenly, but she didn’t scowl the way she had the first time Kari had said those words to her. “I think I understand that now,” the girl said. “You are deep in a situation you still do not fully grasp, but I understand and appreciate your protective nature. When we met, I thought you were merely a heartless killer who targets my kind.”
“And I pretty much thought the same thing about your people,” Kari said. “I’ve already learned a lot since we got here, and I promise you, I not only won’t forget it, but I’ll make sure everyone else learns it, too.”
“We must concentrate first on surviving this encounter with King Sekassus, and making it safely back home,” Uldriana said evenly, her impassiveness returning to her features.
“Why are you so concerned about that? I thought the Overking’s laws were supposed to keep us safe in that regard,” Sonja said.
“King Sekassus is not exactly trustworthy,” Uldriana said. “He may give us Seven Days to leave his realm, but that does not mean he will not place obstac
les in our way that hinder us for eight.”
“That’s what Celigus said,” Kari returned with a nod, and Uldriana looked as though she were about to chastise her for not calling him King. “Don’t worry, Celigus is very casual with the people of our world. Anyway, I’ve been coming up with a plan to get us out safely since the minute he told me that.”
Uldriana nodded, satisfied, and they continued along through the city. Uldriana found both an eatery and a dry goods store, and they were able to stock up on rations and supplies, and have a quick but fresh breakfast. Once their tasks were done, they approached the outskirts of the city on its western side, where Kari saw that there was an elestram sitting beside the door of his house. There was a wonderful painting of an elestram hanging on the front door, and when Uldriana saw it, she moved over toward the seated jackal-man. He rose to his feet and said something in that flowing language of theirs, and Uldriana bowed her head and said something in return. Both turned and looked at the painting, and there was some continued conversation before they bowed their heads to each other again and Uldriana moved on.
“What was that about?” Kari inquired when they were a fair distance from the elestram.
“The portrait you saw on the door was his grandfather,” the mallasti girl answered. “The elestram paint portraits, or have portraits painted of loved ones who return to the embrace of the Great Mother, and place them on the door of their home. It is to remind the community that they have lost a friend, a loved one, and a valuable member of their society. My people memorialize our dead differently, but I appreciate the way the elestram present their grief.”
“Are you a priestess?” Danilynn asked, and Uldriana stopped to face her squarely.
“All females of my kind are considered reflections of the Great Mother, but as to whether I am a priestess in the same capacity you are, no,” the mallasti girl said. “I am but a simple girl, born to simple villagers, not blessed or special in any way.”
“Yes, you are,” Kari said. “You’re a very brave young woman, willing to walk into the home of a demon king to help strangers. That’s pretty special. I wouldn’t have had the guts to do that when I was nineteen.”
Sonja nodded. “That’s right. It’s not what you are that makes you special, it’s what you do,” she said, and she glanced at Kari. “Something I’m finding to be more and more true every passing day.”
“We have a tendency to see what’s special about others, without seeing those same qualities in ourselves,” Danilynn said. “So when others say they see something special in you, you’re best served to be gracious and accept that it’s probably true.”
Uldriana’s snout dipped toward the street, almost like an apologetic gesture. “You three are most kind; thank you,” the mallasti girl said quietly.
“So what can you tell us about Saristor?” Kari asked. “That’s our next stop, right? Or do we plan to avoid the city?”
“No, avoiding the city would draw more attention than walking into it and requesting an audience with Prince Vassiras,” Uldriana said. “We will go and make our intentions to visit King Sekassus known, so there is no trickery assumed, and no reason for them to deny or violate the Seven Days’ Grace. As for the city itself, it is a place of constant trade, where the people of Tess’Vorg and the syrinthians of Sorelizar may meet and trade goods. At this time of year, it may not be crowded, but even if it is, we should have little issue alerting Prince Vassiras of our intentions.”
Kari nodded, satisfied with the mallasti girl’s explanation and logic. She wondered if they would be whisked into the presence of Sekassus’ son, and whether he would bring up the fact that Kari had killed his brother.
Chapter XV – Den of Cobras
They reached Saristor after several more days, during which Uldriana spent the majority of the time teaching Sonja. The girl no longer spoke openly about the kings or Be’shatha, but Kari knew it was because she was wary of being overheard or spied upon somehow. Sonja used her masking spell to keep them out of sight as much as possible, and there had been no indication that they were followed by Turillia, or whoever it was. They had managed to leave Tess’Vorg without any attention from King Emanitar, and very little drama.
Saristor rose up on the far bank of a river that split the two realms apart. The harmauth sentries were more common along the border of Tess’Vorg here. There was a cabin near a wide bridge that crossed the river, and it looked to Kari as though there was an erestram family in charge of keeping watch over the bridge. A massive erestram male sat on the porch with his war scythe standing beside him, his vigilance aimed primarily at the river and the bridge while a pair of pups that barely reached Kari’s waist played in the yard. The erestram regarded the party of women only briefly as they passed, nodding curtly to Uldriana, though he said nothing.
The city was impressive, walled all the way around, with no buildings on the outside of the fortifications. It wasn’t expansive or open like Rulaj, suggesting a much smaller population and tighter security. It did have open archways, and even from a distance while crossing the bridge, Kari could see that they were guarded by sylinths. That gave Kari pause; as terrifying as an angry erestram was, sylinths were a lot deadlier, no matter how “easily” people thought Kari had killed Prince Ressallk. The sylinth guards didn’t bother the travelers headed into and out of the city, but Kari was sure their presence probably kept away anyone looking for trouble.
Except for us, she thought grimly as she and her companions approached.
That thought was confirmed almost immediately. One of the sylinths slithered before the group of women and held its long-bladed spear before it, though not exactly in a threatening manner. It hissed something to Uldriana, and Kari glanced at Sonja and Danilynn to see if they could understand whatever it was saying. Kari had still only learned a few basics of the infernal tongue, but she didn’t think that was what language the sylinth was using. As expected, Sonja and Danilynn both shrugged or shook their heads in answer to the unspoken question.
The conversation lasted less than half a minute before Uldriana gestured for the others to follow her into the city. “We have been ordered to go to the customs officials,” she said as they set off through the archway. “We will declare our destination to them, and then see if the Prince wants to meet with us before we go. We should only spend the night here if specifically detained by the Prince; otherwise, our Seven Days’ Grace begins the moment we are approved to make our way to the capital city of Sorelizar.”
“Agreed,” Kari said. She followed her mallasti escort into the city. The interior was no less impressive than the outer wall had suggested. The streets were wide, cobbled expanses with room enough for carts and travelers. The buildings were generally two or three stories, and the only one that rose higher than that was the stately yet fairly modest palace in the north, which they could see up the main thoroughfare. It was a stone mansion, but its size indicated that it was built to accommodate the needs of the rest of the city, and not just its Prince’s greed. In a minor way, that made Kari respect Prince Vassiras a little bit.
The open plaza before the archways was a market square. There were numerous mallasti and elestram merchants behind carts or stalls, some selling chicken or fowl, while others sold various fruits, vegetables, nuts, or even cheeses in some cases. It still seemed strange to Kari; she had always assumed the beshathans, as Uldriana called them, were all carnivorous. Uldriana had brought mostly salted meats and jerky with her as rations, but then Kari thought perhaps that was just a product of where she lived.
More prominent here, as expected, were the syrinthians. The snake people dressed in light, flowing garments in vibrant colors, and their lithe forms made their way here and there with a grace of movement. Kari’s most prominent meeting with one of their kind had actually been with a half-syrinthian, half-succubus, so she took in the differences between Turillia and these pure-blooded snake-folk curiously. Unlike Turillia, their scaly skin was light tan, like a human, with a gre
enish hue to it, though in some cases she saw those with golden or coppery scales with black highlights. Their eyes were much the same: wide and golden, the slitted pupils narrow in the strong, early morning sun. Their hair was long, silky, and almost exclusively black, and from what Kari could see in the first few minutes, males tended to wear theirs shaved on the sides and shoulder-length on the top and back, while females seemed to not cut theirs at all until it reached waist-level. Lastly, and most curiously, were their tails, which resembled the body of a snake but weren’t long enough to reach the ground. Even having seen them on the syrinthians she was holding prisoner on the campus didn’t stop Kari from comparing their tails to her own.
The syrinthian people in particular stared at Kari and her friends, and the demonhunter understood that rir were probably never seen in these parts. It would be one thing for a rir to be marooned on Mehr’Durillia somehow and seek refuge in Anthraxis while they tried to find their way back to Citaria, but Kari doubted anyone in their right mind would spend any extended time in the realms of one of the kings, particularly the vicious and unpredictable ones. Still, despite their curiosity, the snake-folk did not impose or try to make conversation with either the rir women or their mallasti guide, so Kari and her friends passed by them silently.
Uldriana led the group up the main road, and at the far end near the palace was a squat, sterile-looking building that served as the customs office. Similar to the sign at the inn called Hope’s End, the one here was trilingual, spelling out the building’s use in infernal, syrinthian, and beshathan. Kari couldn’t read any of them, but she now recognized the alphabet for each, and could at least transliterate the one in infernal. Despite its drab nature, the building itself was still decoratively crafted, the obvious work of elestram hands.