Chain of Illusions (Bringer and the Bane)

by Brux, Boone

  “Tonight.” Gregory placed the dagger back on the table. “That will give you time to rest. She will need all of our strength.”

  “I will be there.” Nothing would keep him from Rell’s side.

  “Good.” The king faced him. “I don’t foresee her transformation to be as easy as yours.”

  “I’ll give her whatever strength I have.” He scooted from the table. His legs quivered, and he grabbed the edge of the wood in an effort not to stumble. Gregory reached for him, but Siban waved him away and straightened. “I’m all right.”

  “Then come to the house and eat.” Willa, Rell’s mother, stepped from the shadows. Her white-blond hair glimmered in the candlelight and her eyes sparkled with determination. “We’re all going to need to fortify ourselves if we plan on saving my daughter.”

  Though he wasn’t the least bit hungry, under no circumstance would Siban contradict Willa once she’d made a command. The woman was fire and ice mixed into a tiny, unassuming package. He was fairly certain Willa would have gone into the bowels of the Shadow World herself to bring back her daughter’s body if Luc and Jade hadn’t beaten her to it. Such fierce loyalty was a trait he understood and respected.

  He nodded. “I am coming, my lady.”

  …

  The wind beat against the thick, murky glass of the window, its low howl like a consoling friend. Rell dragged her talon through the dirt on the floor, circling the point in an endless design of interconnecting loops. Though the Bringers had provided her with a comfortable bed and blankets to warm her against the nip in the air, she preferred to feel the cold. Material comforts were something she hadn’t had since she was a human and using them now somehow poked at her like a lie.

  The cell the Bringers had constructed for her sat in the center of the room, out of reach of the stone walls, which had been warded to keep her in. The iron bars pressed against her back and wings like an icy reminder that though the Bringers were trying to help her, she was still subject to their decision of whether she would live or die.

  “You look like a giant bird,” said a child’s voice from near the door.

  Rell dragged her eyes away from her mindless scrawling and leveled her gaze on the small boy. Hayden, she’d thought she’d heard the human woman call him. His blue eyes were round and his brown hair tousled from the wind. Dirt smudged his face and the faint scent of fear mixed with unrepressed curiosity emanated from him. He’d been a regular visitor, though Rell suspected his mother didn’t know. “What kind of bird?”

  “A love bird.” Hayden scooted forward a few inches, his pants scraping against the dirt floor. “Like the pretty green one in the painting in Lord Le Daun’s library.”

  She cocked a brow. “You think I’m pretty?”

  His head bobbed up and down. “Sometimes the light from the fire makes your skin sparkle, like jewels. And sometimes, like now, your eyes turn bright green.”

  “My eyes turn green?”

  He nodded again. Except for her reflection in the hot pools in the cavern of the Shadow World, where she’d raised Jade, Rell had never seen her demon reflection. Always she’d assumed her eyes were yellow, like the other Bane. The boy’s words pushed the darkness that threatened to steal through her soul back to a tolerable level. His unguarded innocence and honesty encompassed her like the warm blankets she refused to use.

  “Thank you.” Besides Siban, nobody but the boy had ever made her feel like she wasn’t an abomination. Even Jade’s tireless struggle to help keep Rell’s humanity had been mired in the fact that Rell was a Demon Bane and not a normal sister. Every struggle they’d overcome, every move they had made had hinged on her being Bane. Rell’s time with Icarus, the Demon King’s son, had been based on the fact that the two of them were different from the other demons. It seemed that even among her kind, she did not fit in. “I think you would like flying.”

  Hayden’s eyes widened. “Can you take me one day?”

  She gave him a sad smile. He was so trusting, which would mean his death if he’d been talking to any demon other than her. “I don’t think we’ll get the chance, Hayden. The others are going to try and make me better tonight—human again.”

  A frown creased his small face. “Will you still have your wings?”

  Rell shook her head.

  His scowl increased. “I like you the way you are.”

  “Thank you.” A knot formed in her throat. “Perhaps when I am human we can hunt together. It’s not the same as flying, but it would still be fun.”

  That idea seemed to placate him, but before he could answer the door swung open, bringing with it a blast of cold air and Siban. The boy scooted backward and pressed his back against the wall. Hayden stared up at Siban, the wonder in his eyes now replaced with fear.

  “Does your mother know you’re here, boy?”

  Hayden shook his head.

  “Best run along to the house. There are warm biscuits and honey in the library.”

  Hayden rose and skirted Siban’s large body but stopped at the door, turning back to Rell. “You promise we’ll go hunting?”

  Her lips tightened into a smile and she nodded, unable to speak the promise she might not be able to keep. The healing the Bringers were to attempt on her had never been done before—by any of them. There was no guarantee she would survive the transition. The one consoling thought was that at least she would be free of the oppressive darkness inside her that constantly demanded she give in to its will.

  Siban pulled the door closed behind Hayden and turned to face her. “It’s time.”

  She pushed up from the floor of the cage and stood, ignoring the quiver in her legs that was more from nerves than fatigue or cold. “I’m ready.”

  He approached the cage and wrapped his hands around the bars. “Everything is going to be all right, Rell. I’ll be there with you through the healing.” His troubled hazel gaze held hers. “We’ve already been through so much.” His voice cracked slightly. “When this is over, we’ll be able to start a new life.”

  Together was left unspoken. There was no need. From the first time they’d met, their paths had been joined. She’d secretly cared for him in the Shadow World, tending his wounds after Sha-hera and Vile had tortured him for information about the Bringers. She’d fed him when, trying to break his will, they had left him to starve. She’d given him the comfort of her companionship, which she’d needed just as much as he had.

  “I hope you’re right, Siban.” Rell approached the door of the cell. “But if something goes wrong…”

  “It won’t.” His jaw clenched and unclenched. “I refuse to lose you again.”

  She nodded, unwilling to shatter his fragile conviction to save her. “What now?”

  “I’ll need to carry you to the healing room. The floors and walls are still warded, as are the grounds. You’ll be burned and drawn back to the Shadow World if you touch anything.”

  Her sister, Jade, and Ravyn, had been thorough in marking the area around Rell’s cell. The wards left the walls and the floor inside her prison free of magic. Even though escape would have been impossible, Rell had not even been tempted. There was nothing left for her in the world of the Demon Bane. There never had been.

  Being reunited with Siban had eradicated Rell’s urge to flee and given her a small spark of hope that she really could be human again. Though, if they were successful in the healing, she doubted she would emerge as the same woman who had lost her soul to the Demon Bane thirteen years ago.

  Dark thoughts pressed down on her. “I’ll warn you,” she said, trying to lighten the mood, “I think I’ve put on weight with the rich food my mother has been feeding me.”

  He smiled. “It’s fortunate I’ve been brought to full power then. My new strength will come in handy.”

  Rell cocked her head and scanned his body from head to toe. “I knew there was something different about you. I thought perhaps you’d bathed.”

  “A bath?” He harrumphed and pointed to his Tell
tattoo. “I’ve just gained the mythical powers of our people and you compare it to bathing?” He reached inside the pocket at the front of his tunic and pulled out the key to her cell. “I can see I’ll never suffer from an inflated ego with you around.”

  A small laugh slipped from Rell, taking her by surprise. It had been a long time since she’d actually felt anything close to happiness. Interesting that the only times she could remember had been with Siban.

  The key scraped against the lock, and the metal grated as the large bolt slid into its casing. He pulled the door open and stepped inside, slipping the key back into his pocket. “Your carriage awaits, my lady.”

  Rell folded her wings tightly against her back and took a step toward him, stopping an inch away. He was ruggedly handsome. His features spoke of a heritage from the sand people, darker skin and sculpted cheekbones and chin. But what she liked best about Siban were his hazel eyes. Though he was a man of few words, his eyes spoke volumes.

  She tilted her head. “Siban?” Her voice came out as a whisper. “Will you kiss me one last time—as Rell?”

  Perhaps with the feel of his lips on hers she’d make it through the healing. If not, she’d cross through the Veil knowing he’d truly cared for her for who she had been—a Demon Bane.

  He lifted his hand and caressed her lower lip with his thumb. “And I will kiss you every day for the rest of your life when this is complete.”

  His head lowered to hers and his lips gently brushing against her mouth. Strong arms enveloped Rell, dragging her against his hard body. He dwarfed her, making her feel safe and giving her a sense that he could indeed chase the darkness from her soul.

  Chapter Two

  Siban lifted Rell’s tiny, warm body and cradled her against him. The Bane taint bit into his skin but he made no show of the irritation. Now at full power, the bite was stronger than he was used to, but he endured it without complaint. She wound her arms around his neck and rested her head against his shoulders. Nothing would stop him from saving her—nothing.

  He maneuvered her out of the cell and strode across the room. Before opening the door, he stopped and turned to face her prison. “This is the last time you will ever have to be in here.”

  She gave a slight nod and threaded her talons through his hair. With no more words, he turned and kicked the door open. The wind caught the wood, slamming it against the outside wall. She shivered in his arms, and he pulled her more tightly to him.

  The partial moon was bright, its glow lighting the path back to the manor. Wind rustled through the trees, causing their branches to sway in a slow dance. Leaves rubbed against each other. Their movement created a swooshing sound that rose and fell with the force of the breeze.

  The healing house stood closer to the manor, far inside the warded boundaries the Bringers had erected. Siban decided on the direct path across the grass, his mind sifting through what was about to happen. It took a minute before he realized the biting irritation, a Bringer’s alert that there was a demon near, had increased. His steps slowed. The sensation was different than Rell’s, stronger, more caustic.

  “What is it?” She lifted her head and looked around the dark grounds.

  “Can you feel that?” He didn’t know if the Bane could sense each other. The Bringers had never had the chance to question a demon. Always they’d just dispatched the creatures back to the Shadow World. “I think there is another demon close by.”

  Rell was silent for a second and then looked at him. “Icarus. I recognize his presence.”

  A twinge of jealousy pinched Siban. She and the son of the Demon King had formed a relationship during their quest to lure Jade and Luc into the Shadow World. Siban couldn’t help but wonder what that bond had entailed.

  He scanned the trees, turning in a slow circle. Not used to his new Tell abilities, he forced his awareness outward in an attempt to locate the powerful demon. His senses sped across the ground like a psychic blanket, perceiving a thousand different details about the night. The wind, the life force of insects, and plants registered but did not disrupt the wholeness of his inquiry. The immense amount of information rushed through him, pounding along every nerve of his body. In an effort to cope, he stilled his mind and relinquished control over his Tell powers. They would guide him.

  Even before he’d been brought to full power, he’d been able to sense when something was true or a lie. Now the intensity of his abilities nearly swamped him. His Tell slithered toward the demon. At the tree line, it began to vibrate, sending information and warning back to him.

  “Yes, it’s Icarus,” he said. Instantly Siban understood the situation. Curiosity, and even a sense of hope, emanated from the pulsing darkness. He let his awareness linger on the demon, trying to absorb and understand all he felt. The information was an undefinable mass of impressions and darkness, but the demon didn’t feel angry.

  “Will he attack?” Tension flowed through Rell’s body, her posture growing stiff in his hold.

  “No, I think he’s waiting to see how you fair with the healing.”

  She settled against him again. “Oh,” was all she said.

  Icarus’s discovery that the Bringers had found Rell’s human body had led the demon to confront Jade, Luc, and Ravyn’s sister, Meran, after Rell’s capture. Bold in a way no other Bringer had ever dared to be with Icarus, Meran had approached and touched the demon. What surprised everybody was that Icarus hadn’t attacked, hadn’t stolen her away when he could have so easily picked her up and flown into the night.

  Later Meran had divulged to the rest of the Bringers what she’d sensed when she’d made contact with Icarus. “He is searching for something. The darkness inside him is like nothing I’ve ever felt. He is at odds with his father, Vile, and he knows all is not as he’s been told.” After another deep breath, she’d said, “He’s been banished from the Shadow World.”

  That was all she had shared with them, but Siban suspected there was more. One could not touch the Bane darkness and remain unaffected.

  Turning his thoughts back to Rell’s healing, Siban continued toward the healing house, his strides eating up the ground. The quicker they converted her back to human, the safer she would be from Icarus’s influence.

  They entered the room and Siban’s step slowed. He was surprised to see even more Bringers assembled. One woman, he knew instantly, though he’d never met her—Ravyn and Meran’s oldest sister Juna. Expected to arrive days prior, unforeseen circumstances had delayed her appearance. Beside her stood a fairly young-looking man. His dark auburn hair glinted copper in the candlelight and Siban couldn’t help noticing that he appeared trail-weary. A few days’ growth shadowed his chin and though his eyes were bright, dark circles puddled beneath them.

  Siban sent up a prayer of thanks to the Saints that Juna had reached the manor in time for Rell’s healing. The three sisters, Ravyn, Meran, and Juna, were the Trilation. Three Bringers to battle the darkness and open or prevent the opening of the Abyss of Souls. They were also powerful Oracles and might be the extra measure of guidance Rell would need to pass from demon back to human.

  Rell’s arms tightened around his neck. The crowd stepped back to allow them to pass. A few of the Bringers rubbed their arms, no doubt against the gnawing of the Bane taint Rell caused.

  “Welcome, Rell.” King Gregory greeted them from halfway across the room. “We’ll try to make you as comfortable as possible.”

  She peered at him, as if weighing how much she could trust him and then said, “Thank you.”

  The urge to clutch the small demon to him, and never release her, overwhelmed Siban. This might be the last time he held her—the last time he’d see her alive. But he pushed his personal needs aside and set her on her feet. Uncertainty plagued him. Rell had only seen her human body once and it had been during the chaotic night of her capture. How would she react to seeing her body in its suspended, death-like state? Siban stepped back when Jade approached.

  …

  Rell had b
een at odds with her sister since the day she’d been captured. She waited for Jade to speak. The glow of the candles illuminated her face. No malice or anger registered there, giving Rell a measure of comfort. Instead of words of reassurance, Jade reached for her hand and intertwined their fingers, pulling Rell toward the line of Bringers standing several feet away. They parted to reveal a table she hadn’t noticed when they’d first arrived.

  Rell’s heart beat faster, the realization of what lay beneath the white shroud taking hold. She stopped, tugging Jade to a halt.

  Her sister turned. “Don’t you want to see her?”

  Jade’s question confirmed what Rell had suspected. Though her sister had fought and sacrificed to keep Rell’s humanity intact, she’d always viewed her as something other than Esmeralda, her human sister. Rell stiffened her spine, refusing to show that the thought stung.

  Her gaze drifted back to the shrouded figure. Did she want to see her body? Would it change anything? Whether or not it did, she needed to see. “Yes.”

  Not releasing her hand, Jade pulled her forward until they stood next to the table. Two Bringers, one woman, one man, gently folded back the cover to reveal the porcelain features of the girl she’d once been.

  Rell untwined her fingers from Jade’s and took a step closer, angling her body so she could view the face more clearly. Esmeralda, her old body, looked as if she were sleeping, though the coloring of the skin was more pallid than it had been when she’d been full of life. She reached and touched the cheek with the knuckle of her finger, making sure not to prick the skin with her talon. The soft flesh gave way under her caress but felt unnaturally cold.

  Rell pulled her hand away, paused to take one final look, and then turned away. “I am ready.”

  Having her body revealed had made no difference in her resolve to go through with the healing. The driving force was no longer just to be human, but to be with Siban and possibly repay the Demon Bane for all they had taken from her. She would do whatever it took.