Demon Lord VI - Son of Chaos

by T C Southwell

  Chapter Eleven

  Tarnished Light

  Bane flew over a bright city with Drevarin and Kayos, the dark power thrumming through him with its familiar malice. The metropolis shimmered under a translucent blue dome like a bed of diamonds, and several ships similar to Nikira’s docked beside towering glass spires. They had left the ship with the refugees, and now approached the colossal Realm Gate, passing over the lesser fire dome. Drevarin kept them invisible, thereby allowing them to see each other. Bane followed Kayos into the Gate, swooping under flying traffic to land on the diamond sand, which appeared tarnished, most of its sparkle gone.

  Kayos led them into a massive, pillared Gate Hall that seemed to be made of snow or ice. Diamonds sparkled in the pillars, but dirt stained the intricately carved walls with streaks of yellow and brown, and soot gathered in runic symbols of immense power. Many of the diamonds had been pried out, leaving the glinting columns pitted with dark holes, like pockmarks.

  The humans who had sullied it had converted the Gate Hall into an eatery. Moulded plastic tables and chairs furnished it, filled with men, women and children enjoying an afternoon’s outing in the light realm. Groups of tourists followed guides into the cloud gardens, which also bore the stamp of corruption, stained grey and lacking their glow, the silver filigree trees almost bereft of their cloud leaves. Bane glanced up at the sky, which should have been a swirling medley of rainbow hues, but instead was dark turquois.

  Kayos followed his gaze. “The light realm is dormant, like its owner.”

  The Grey God led them into the tarnished gardens, away from the gazebo on the far side of the hall. The numberless mortal visitors had formed a broad avenue in the clouds, and tourists thronged it, laughing and pointing. They filled containers with diamond sand while their children rolled in the clouds, shredding them. Shops and inns lined the avenue, and they passed a theme park where pools had been built and children gambolled, laughing at clowns and entertainers.

  The people certainly enjoyed the light realm, Bane mused, but, judging by Kayos and Drevarin’s tight-lipped expressions, it was forbidden. The avenue continued for miles, past great tracts of rolling, misty land filled with fragile trees and drifting clouds, scintillating diamond cliffs and alabaster mountains. Fountains of pure water fed sweet streams that gurgled over crystal beds and formed glistening lakes whence soft skeins of mist arose to drift away on the breeze.

  Bane had always thought that light realms were small, and their true immensity surprised him. People disported themselves everywhere, camped beside sleek flying vehicles and picnicked in the clouds. Young couples courted amid the sparkling trees and lay together on the soft white sand, leaving behind their garbage.

  As Kayos led Bane and Drevarin deeper into it, they found private mansions built from pale material similar to that which they had seen aboard the ship. People gyrated to loud music in drunken orgies, naked men and women rutted in the soiled splendour of a light god’s realm. The depths of debauchery to which they had sunk surprised Bane. There were even demons in man form amongst them, enjoying the fruits of corruption.

  They arrived at the foot of a vast, sparkling mountain that shone with pale light, a last bastion of purity amid the defiled majesty. A crowd jostled for position in front of a sweeping archway of carved alabaster inlaid with diamonds, set into a sheer cliff. Kayos led them around the throng, which gaped and pointed at a glowing gate within the archway, where brilliant wards meshed the air in a fiery web. To Bane’s amazement, a group of men used strange machinery to try to meddle with the wards.

  Kayos snorted. “Fools.”

  “Could they succeed?”

  He shot Bane a scathing glance. “Never. A birthing chamber is impregnable.”

  “But you know how to get in, I assume?”

  “I have not tried it before, but I think I can.”

  “Will it let me in?”

  Kayos shook his head. “You will have to cast out the rest of your power.”

  “Why could you not Move into it?”

  “Because it has white wards, like a domain’s boundaries. There is no key to this gate. It will open for the light god of this domain, and no other.”

  Bane sighed, gazing at the portal. “Why do I get the impression that this is going to take a while?”

  “It will not take as long as you think, if it is going to work at all.”

  Bane walked up the slope on one side of the overcrowded road and sat down with Drevarin, letting the remnants of his power seep away in a blue glow. He had used up most of it on the journey into the domain. Kayos approached the portal and stopped a few yards from the crowd, which the slopes on either side of the pathway penned in. He stood a short way up the slope, where no one would bump into him, and contemplated the chamber for several minutes, his expression pensive. As Bane lost interest, the Grey God raised his arms and drew shining runes in the air with both hands, which floated towards the portal.

  Bane glanced at Drevarin. “Do you know what he is doing?”

  The light god smiled. “I have no idea. This is beyond my skills, or yours, for that matter. Probably something only a Grey God knows how to do.”

  The crowd did not appear to see the runes. Some people left and others joined, pointing odd instruments at the gate that clicked and whirred. For several more minutes, Kayos sent white runes into the portal, which absorbed them, then it sent back a stream of shining symbols. Kayos spread his hands to receive them, his face a study of concentration as they vanished into his palms. When the stream of runes ended, Kayos stood like a statue, pondering. Bane picked up a handful of diamond sand and sifted it through his fingers.

  Drevarin nudged him. “I think he communicated with the portal, and it replied.”

  Bane snorted and smiled, nodding.

  Kayos wrote a second series of runes in the air, sending them into the gate. It replied with a shorter string of symbols, which he pondered once more, his head bowed. Bane yawned and closed his eyes, studied the crowd’s tainted souls and noted that two of the men who tried to open the birthing chamber were demons. The crowd’s number grew and shrank as people came and went. Since there was no night in the light realm, it served as a full-time holiday resort. Time crawled past as Kayos stood immobile, lost in contemplation of the task before him, probably plumbing the depths of his considerable knowledge for a way to open the gate.

  Kayos raised his head and spoke in a whispery, lilting voice that made Bane’s nape hairs bristle. The crowd muttered, and the men around the machine looked up in surprise.

  Bane glanced at Drevarin. “What did he say?”

  “I cannot translate those words. They are used to command the white power. I would not be able to understand the words you use to command the shadows, and you could not translate those either. All I can tell you is that he used his name.”

  “Is that significant?”

  Drevarin nodded. “When a command is used in the name of a Grey God, his traits are brought to bear. In the case of Kayos, his is probably the most powerful name of all, since it commands the very essence from which all things are made.”

  The ground trembled, and the muttering crowd surged back in alarm. The men around the machines shouted, pushing flashing buttons on their strange mechanisms. The white wards that laced the air before the arched doors flickered, and Kayos turned and beckoned. Bane rose and approached him, Drevarin close behind. Kayos gripped his arm and flashed a meaningful glance at Drevarin, who took hold of Bane’s other arm. The Demon Lord frowned, a little put out at being handled, and Kayos pulled him towards the gate.

  “I trust you have no more power,” Kayos muttered.

  “No.”

  “Good, because if you do, this will hurt a lot.”

  They passed through the flickering wards with only a slight shock tingling Bane’s skin, and stopped before the carved gate. Behind them, the wards became steady once more, and Bane eyed them as Kayos examined the runes on the doors. Curious, Bane stuck his finger
into one of the ward lines, and snatched it back with a hiss of pain.

  Drevarin chuckled. “If you had asked, I would have told you that would hurt.”

  “Some things I like to find out for myself, since a lot of rules do not seem to apply to me.”

  Kayos glanced around. “He is right, Drevarin. He has many advantages, being mortal, but passing through white wards is not one of them.”

  “Is that all that prevents you from passing through them? Pain?”

  “No.” Drevarin grinned. “That was only a warning. If you tried to walk through them, you would be flung back. No one can pass through white wards, except angels.”

  Bane grunted, and Kayos ran his hands over the runes on the doors. They glowed briefly as he read them, and he looked thoughtful, then pressed his palms to several, activating them. The arcane symbols filled with pearly light, and after a moment there was a soft grating as a giant stone lock disengaged. The twin doors unsealed with a click, and a line of light shone through the gap. Kayos pushed against one, which swung inwards to reveal a round chamber that brilliant ward lines webbed with searing light.

  Bane eyed them. “Hellfire.”

  Kayos cast him a smile. “Nothing is quite so well protected as an unborn god.”

  The men outside shouted at the sight of the open door, then one tried to charge through the wards. He was flung back with a shriek of agony, his clothes smoking, the lines of charred cloth matching the wards’ pattern.

  Bane snorted. “Fool. He should have stuck a finger in them first.”

  Drevarin chuckled, his eyes sparkling. “How does yours fare?”

  Bane held up the offended digit. “Still attached.”

  Kayos said, “Will you two be quiet?”

  The Grey God raised a hand and wrote a single shining symbol in the air, which drifted across the chamber.

  As it reached a set of runes on the far wall, Kayos whispered, “Sssssethin.”

  The wards vanished, and a faint chime rang out. At the same moment, a domed object shaped like a casket began to glow.

  “That means disarm,” Drevarin said.

  “I think I could have figured that out,” Bane remarked.

  Kayos entered the chamber and stopped beside the silver casket, which was at least seven feet long, five feet high and four feet wide at its base. Bane wandered around it, studying it, and Drevarin gazed at it with shining eyes. Hundreds of runes covered the chamber’s walls, some grouped together to form words. The domed casket was unadorned, and looked out of place. Kayos ran his hands over it, its glow brightening where he touched it.

  Bane stopped beside Drevarin. “Why did you two drag me through the wards?”

  “Those wards cannot be completely deactivated, so we had to shield you. They will only allow light gods to pass through them.”

  Bane nodded, gazing at the casket. “So, you came out of one of these things. What is it called?”

  “A viachin. But I was not a created child; my mother birthed me. This is the child of a god with no mate.”

  Kayos moved around the viachin, stroking it in circular motions, his hands leaving bright, glowing trails that gradually faded. Near its top, a shining letter formed, and he paused to study it. Bane leant closer, intrigued, as the Grey God moved his hands apart, and more bright letters appeared, spelling out a name. Kayos bent and kissed the name, which pulsed, then remained lighted when he removed his hands.

  “Sherinias,” he whispered, and the chamber echoed the name in a hissing chant that faded away into silence. Kayos turned to smile at them. “She is a goddess.”

  A flicker passed around the chamber. The lines of runes lighted and dimmed in quick succession, spelling out glowing words, as if liquid fire coursed through them. The sequence started at the top of the chamber and worked its way down the walls, every rune activating except the one Kayos had used to disarm the wards. The sequence ended at the back of the chamber, and it went dark again, save for the glowing viachin. Then the walls burst into brilliant luminescence, forcing Bane to squint.

  The hairs on his nape rose as a pure, warm force entered the chamber, filling it with power. He glanced at Drevarin, alarmed to find him glowing, as if he was made of light, his expression blissful. Kayos was also radiant, his eyes shining and silver hair sparkling. Bane glanced down at his hands and found that he too was filled with light. It shone through his skin, making him tingle. The light intensified until he could hardly keep his eyes open, then dimmed to a more bearable glow.

  A shining crack appeared along the top of the viachin. The sides slid apart and vanished into the ground. A girl with ink-black hair and skin as golden as the sun lay on a bed of gleaming satin, her slender form sheathed in a gown of diamond lace edged with pearls. White power seethed around her, soaking into her in a river of light. She drew in a deep breath, and her hands fluttered, then she opened azure eyes and stared at the roof. The light ebbed as she sat up and raised her head to look at Bane, who recoiled from the yearning in her eyes.

  “Father?”

  Kayos stepped in front of Bane as he opened his mouth to deny the charge.

  “Here I am, child.”

  With a tremulous, adoring smile, she held out a slender hand. Kayos took it and helped her to her feet, and she stepped into his embrace, winding her arms around his neck. She had the willowy form of a fifteen-year-old girl, on the brink of womanhood, but yet to take the last step into it. Bane moved closer to Drevarin, noticed that his mouth was open and nudged him. The light god shot him a startled look and closed his mouth.

  Sherinias released Kayos and stepped back, sank to her knees and pressed her brow to his feet. “I thank you for my life, beloved Father.”

  “I am Kayos. Your name is Sherinias. Arise, you are born.”

  She rose, only half a head shorter than Kayos, and turned to bow to Bane. “I am Sherinias, daughter of Kayos.”

  Bane shot Kayos an accusing look and wished that he had explained what was to happen beforehand. “I am Bane, son of Kayos.”

  She smiled. “You are my brother.”

  “Yes.”

  Sherinias seemed to float towards him, her arms outstretched, and he stepped back, frowning.

  Kayos glared at him. “Bane...”

  Bane steeled himself and stood still, intensely uncomfortable as Sherinias twined her arms around his neck, forcing him to bend so she could embrace him, for the top of her head barely reached his chin. She brushed her lips against his cheek, released him and stepped back, bestowing a radiant smile upon him.

  “You are mortal. How wonderful.”

  She turned to Drevarin, who gazed at her with his heart shining in his eyes. “I am Sherinias, daughter of Kayos.”

  “I am Drevarin, son of Merlinan and Dravinar.”

  Sherinias bowed her head and held out her hands. Drevarin took them, and she raised his hands to her lips, kissing the back of each one. “My heart sings with joy at your presence to witness my birth.”

  “You bring a new light into this world.”

  Sherinias released Drevarin and turned to Kayos, the light of her birth flowing from her like mist. He summoned a cup of ambrosia and gave it to her, and she sipped it.

  Bane moved closer to Drevarin and whispered, “She is Kayos’ child now?”

  “Oh yes, he birthed her.”

  “But he did not create her.”

  “It does not matter. She must have a parent. If no one claims her, she will have no lineage and no guide.”

  Bane studied Sherinias, who gazed at Kayos with adoring eyes. “But she has a lineage and a real parent.”

  “Who is undoubtedly dead, or he would have returned to birth her. She is an orphan, so Kayos has made her his own. If she was told that she has no parent, she would fall into despair and probably die. Kayos will always be her father now.”

  “But surely light gods do not die when their parent is killed?”

  Drevarin smiled. “No, not once they are mature. She is only a child.”

>   “Kayos had no parent.”

  “He is a Grey God.”

  Bane considered. “Why did her parent not wake her before he left, or seek shelter in the birthing chamber?”

  “Most likely she was not ready to be born, or perhaps he did not want her to be slain as well. If he had come in here for sanctuary, he would have put her in danger too, since he would have had to deactivate the wards inside and open the portal.”

  “Those wards would have remained.” Bane gestured to the web of light outside the door.

  “Could they stop you?”

  Bane eyed the wards, his gaze roaming the portal where they emerged from the stone. “No. I could destroy them.”

  “Then you have your answer. We will find out soon enough what happened, when Sherinias learns it from the Oracle.”

  “Could you not find out from it?”

  Drevarin nodded. “But this is not my domain. I would have to go to it and question it, so would Kayos. Only Sherinias can access its knowledge from here. This is her domain, and she will know all its history and information soon. It will upset her.”

  “So this became her domain as soon as her parent left?”

  “Yes. The reins of power always go to the resident god.”

  Bane grew weary of standing and caused a stone seat to arise, which he settled upon with a sigh. Drevarin glanced at him and did the same, summoning a cup of ambrosia. Sherinias now wore a vacant expression, gazing into space with a slight smile, which Bane assumed meant that she was accessing the Oracle. Kayos watched her, evidently waiting for her to discover what had happened to her real parent. Several minutes passed, and then she gasped and reached for Kayos. He took her hand as her cup drifted away and waved a cloud couch into being, guided her to it and made her sit down. She gazed at him, her eyes filled with confusion.