by John Corwin
"Sounds as though you and Daevadius have a lot to talk about." She put a hand on Tyler's cheek. "You are a rare, special jade, but you are not alone when it comes to mistreatment." With that, she herded us away from Vatna's body and began the exorcism.
The Abyssal demon appeared more quickly this time, as though he'd been waiting for another sacrifice. Vatna awoke at the last minute, screaming and struggling, but the vortex creature ignored his pleas and turned his glowing red eye on us.
"In the darkness hangs a pinpoint of light." The demon began to sink into the floor. "The one will soon call me. I will be his salvation and he will be mine."
"Who are you talking about?" I asked.
"He brings salvation to all." The demon's many voices echoed briefly in the small room as he vanished into the pitch black.
Vatna's body flopped onto the bare floor.
"Very odd," Vallaena said. "In the several banishments I've performed, I've never seen the same Abyssal twice."
"You've done this a lot?" I asked.
"Many times." She frowned. "That one must be very powerful indeed."
I probably should have been worried about the Abyssal's strange prophecy, but all I felt was relief. Nearly all of Tyler's nemeses were gone from this world forever.
"I have the name of a final demon, but he is probably still in Haedaemos." I gave her Barboar's name. "Can you banish him as well?"
"Gladly," she said. "After I question the remaining demon."
Relief flooded me.
Soon, Tyler and I would be safe.
Chapter 24
Safety was a relative term in my mind and it didn't take long for me to remember that just because Tyler's tormenters were gone from this world it didn't mean we were truly safe. Karak and Abaddon might have something to say about that.
"I can't tell you how thankful we are," I told Vallaena.
The other woman stroked my hair. "You are two rare jewels, bound together for a reason I cannot discern." She frowned. "I am in the business of knowing everything. I've read foreseeances from every possible source so I could have some hint of the future." She narrowed her eyes. "Yet, I've had no inkling of you."
"Surprise." I smiled and tried to lighten the foreboding mood, but the Daemas was having none of it.
"This hearkens back to the first war. The mortals proclaimed that Heaven and Hell were invading their world." She absentmindedly stroked my cheek. "'Armageddon', they said. 'We are undone.'" Vallaena seemed to snap back into the present and lowered her hand. "We were all nearly undone, but the forces of Hell stopped the invasion of Heaven."
"It sounds like the Bible," Tyler said.
"Hell is the same by any name, though the description varies wildly."
My brow pinched. "What about Heaven?"
"Seraphina, they call it." Vallaena sighed. "I have never seen it, but many mortals were taken there during the Seraphim rule of mankind. I do not think it quite so wondrous as the legends would have us believe." She turned and left the room without another word, then stopped and stared at the female possessed who now huddled in the corner of her room.
"What will they do with Astra?" I asked.
"What do you sense about her, Emily?"
"She feels warm, like you and Tyler." I closed my eyes and tried to get more of a feel. With Vatna and Xasha gone, I no longer felt the nauseating sense associated with their caustic spirits. I opened my eyes as a realization hit me. "She's not a caustic."
Vallaena gave me a sideways glance. "Can you tell what sort she is?"
"I haven't seen color when I—" I tried to think back to what I'd seen when gathering true names.
Tyler nudged me. "When you what?"
I thought back to the patterns flashing in my head and realized there had been a color to them. "I need to touch her."
"Very well." Vallaena went into the room.
Astra stood, fear plain on her face. "Are you here to exorcise me?"
"Perhaps, but I have some questions for you first."
The possessed woman straightened. "I have a sworn allegiance to Lord Karak. I cannot break my oath under any threat."
Vallaena smiled. "You are no lesser." She walked over to the woman and inspected her. "Yet, you are not a lord. You must be a knight."
The woman nodded stiffly. "I am."
"Emily, please enter."
I walked inside. Astra's eyes widened. "You're the one Vatna and Xasha saw on the news. They wanted to rape you to death."
"Miserable caustics," Vallaena said. She motioned me toward her.
"It's not that simple," I said. "She needs to be in pain."
"Oh?" Vallaena raised an eyebrow. "You might have told me that earlier."
"It wasn't necessary," I replied. "Since the others were in a lot of pain."
Astra stiffened even more. "Even under duress, I will not betray my lord."
"I must apologize in advance," Vallaena said.
The possessed woman swung her arm at Vallaena. The Daemas blocked her and the two struggled for a moment before Vallaena pinned her to the floor.
"Now, Emily." She gripped the other woman's index finger and savagely twisted it.
I touched Astra's arm as she screamed. At first there was nothing, but then Vallaena slammed the possessed's head against the floor. A large pattern flashed bright red in my mind. Astranamastia.
I remembered her pattern as one of those in between those of Karak's and the lesser demons'. I jumped back as Astra flailed. Vallaena leapt back, her face red with exertion. "She is stronger than the others, but not quite my match."
"Astranamastia," I said in a bold voice. "You will be still."
Astra froze, eyes wide with terror. "How did you know my name?"
I turned to Vallaena. "Her pattern is red."
"Ah, a ruby spirit." She looked at the very still woman. "What does Karak plan?"
"I do not know much, and what little I do, I will not tell you." She pushed herself up, favoring her broken finger. "You may have my true name, but you will not have my honor."
"Can't we force her to tell us?" I asked.
"A true name gives you power over a demon in spirit form, but even then, that power is limited." Vallaena folded her arms and looked at Astra. "I would so hate to send you to the Abyss as I did Vatna and Xasha."
Astra blanched. "Do your worst."
I couldn't help but admire her. "Why are you so loyal?"
"Karak has been my mentor for thousands of years. He has helped me thrive." Her lips trembled. "I cannot betray him."
"Can you at least tell me if he intends to do harm to Eden?" Vallaena asked.
"He proceeds by the order of Domathus," she replied. "I do not know if the master shared his designs for Eden with the others."
Tyler asked a question I hadn't thought of. "Do you know about Daelissa?"
At this, Astra gave away the merest hint of a flinch. "I will say no more."
Looks like she knows something. Unfortunately, I wasn't a mind reader.
Vallaena pursed her lips and regarded the woman. "Well, we can't have you in Eden. I see no choice but to send you back from whence you came."
"Not to the Abyss?" Astra's voice sounded a hopeful note.
"I think not." The Daemas shook her head slowly. "You will, of course, lose a great deal of power from the exorcism. Perhaps not enough to keep you from Eden, but enough to make your next incarnation less powerful." She seemed hesitant, but after a long moment, her shoulders stiffened with resolve. "You are admirable in your loyalty. I pray it isn't misplaced."
"Misplaced or not, I will not waver from my duty." Astra pushed herself up and faced Vallaena defiantly. "I am ready."
Without further delay, the floor at her feet turned to pitch. Like tentacles grasping their prey, oily tendrils crept up Astra's legs and pulled at her. She tried to maintain her brave façade, but a scream tore from her throat at the last moment. Brilliant red mist poured from her eyes and mouth, forming humanoid shape. With one last wra
ithlike rattle, the hell portal drew her demon form into the ground and the woman's body slumped to the floor. Two grey shapes flitted into the air above her and vanished into the stone ceiling. I stared for a long moment, wondering if I'd truly seen them or not.
"Those other souls must have been bound to her spirit," Vallaena said, proving I hadn't imagined it. "No wonder she was so strong."
"Well, there will be three very confused people when they wake up," Tyler commented dryly as he regarded the unconscious woman. "How do the Custodians handle them?"
"The hosts will likely have no memories of their possession." Vallaena knelt and touched the woman's throat. "She and the others will be taken somewhere and left, I imagine."
"Too bad we don't know much more than before all this." I sighed and dropped into a chair. "At least there are three fewer demons walking around in human form."
"Granted, it is not much," Vallaena said, "but it's a start."
I noticed several new emails on my phone and opened them. Isabel had attached pictures of the apartment for George to use. I saved them to my phone and was able to forward them to George despite the weak internet signal while Tyler talked with Vallaena about their brother.
"Baal's children are legion," Vallaena noted dryly. "I wonder if we share a common mother."
Tyler chuckled. "There's no telling."
"What color demon is Baal?" I asked.
"I believe he was originally onyx," Vallaena said. "Though some claim he was ruby. He's absorbed so many other demons over the millennia, he can appear in just about any color."
"I'd never thought much about demonic colors until Professor Zuba told me I was a jade." Tyler leaned on his elbows. "How many colors are there, and what do they mean?"
"I don't think there is much meaning in the colors, only in the demons themselves." Vallaena stifled a yawn. "Caustics are not always born a sickly yellow. A demon can start out as one thing and become something entirely different."
Tyler frowned. "You mean, a jade could become a caustic?"
"Oh, yes. It is up to each individual to make decisions and ultimately decide their fate." She touched her forehead as if warding off a headache. "You are looking for simple explanations about demon behavior when none exist." Looking at the slumbering form of Astra, she sighed. "I must go and rest. This has been a very taxing evening and I still have much planning to do if my nephew is to be properly guided."
"You mentioned this nephew before. Who is he?" I asked.
"His name is Justin Slade."
Tyler and I looked at each other. I spoke first. "Was he rescued from the vampires who captured him in Colombia?"
Vallaena smiled proudly. "Yes, and then he led Templar forces back inside and overthrew a small vampire army."
Tyler chuckled. "He's a busy guy."
"Indeed." Vallaena's smile faded. "I'm afraid this is only the beginning for him." She walked toward the door. "If you would be so kind as to inform Mr. Walker that he has noms to attend to, I will let myself out." She stopped and grasped one of my hands in both of hers. "I will be sure to banish Barboar after I have rested. I assume you do not need to witness it?"
Tyler chuckled. "Just tell him bon voyage for me, okay?"
She nodded. "Of course. Should either of you need me, inform Agent Walker and he can contact me."
I found myself entranced by the way her silky hair cascaded down her shoulders when she turned her head. "What hair products do you use?"
She raised an eyebrow, but a smile touched her lips. "Nothing special. My demon side keeps my hair looking lustrous no matter how I mistreat it."
Tyler chuckled. "How do you think I keep my majestic mane so thick and shiny?"
Vallaena nodded at Tyler and left the room. I texted George and told him about the host bodies.
Agents on the way. He replied. I have an illusionist working on your fake video as well.
Twenty minutes later, three people in tight black unitards appeared and hauled away the sleeping people. George showed up shortly after that and took us down another level to private quarters about the size and layout of a hotel room.
"This will be cramped compared to what you're used to," he said, "but it will do for now."
"I can't get the internet," I complained. "We're too far underground."
George held up a finger. "One moment, please." He returned moments later with a thin tablet computer. "This arctablet will do everything your nom mobile phone does, and also accepts verbal commands."
"Excellent." I pressed a button on the top and the screen lit up.
"I suggest you lay low until we sort things out with the nom authorities," George said to Tyler."
"What about me?" I asked. "Can I go to work?"
"Why would you want to?" Tyler gave me a quizzical look.
"Because Jack has been working on tracking down the people behind this mess." I put the tablet on the table behind me. "The sooner we put a stop to this nonsense, the faster we can concentrate on what really matters."
"I wouldn't recommend you go to work, Miss Glass." George held his calm gaze on me. "If they can't find Mr. Rock, it's likely they'd use you to track him. I can't have you leading police here. It would make for a very messy situation."
Admittedly, I hadn't really thought it through and George made far too much sense to ignore. "I'll just text Jack for updates."
"Excellent idea." George turned halfway toward the door and stopped. "Breakfast starts at six AM in the mess hall on level one—straight down the corridor from the levitator and you'll see it on your right." He nodded at each of us. "Goodnight."
After he left, Tyler and I decided to go to bed. It was nearly midnight and had been an exhausting day. Unfortunately—or perhaps fortunately—we had no clothes to sleep in. I was more than happy to snuggle up next to my naked Adonis.
"Do you suppose they have surveillance in this room?" I asked Tyler.
He snorted. "Doubtful."
Questions lingered in my mind about some of our earlier conversations. "When you said I've helped you grow, were you being serious?"
He nodded. "When I was so uncertain about what sort of demon I was, you convinced me I was different—better."
"I suppose finding out you're a jade spirit helped."
"It did, but you saw the good in me—that I'm not like Barboar or the other caustics." Tyler caressed my cheek, his eyes welled with emotion. "Em, you are my anchor to this world. You help me see things about myself I never would have considered." A tear trickled down his cheek. "A life without you isn't worth living."
Emotion overcame me and I wrapped my arms around him. "I feel the same way, Tyler. I never want this to end."
He kissed me gently on the forehead. "Neither do I."
The next morning, Tyler and I enjoyed a hearty breakfast with a group of excited Templars who were talking about vampires.
"Next thing I knew, the whole place lit up like New Year's Eve," one man said to Tyler as he recounted the previous night's events. "When we ran in to help with the cleanup, we found out all the vampires had lost their powers."
"How?" I asked.
"Some huge spell is what I heard," a woman replied.
"I hope this means the vampire war is over." The first man jabbed a fried egg with his fork. "Colombia was a nightmare. Thought for sure we'd lost Commander Borathen."
"I hope it's over too, but we're gonna be on cleanup duty for months." The woman looked us over. "So why are you two here?"
"We're with the Custodians," I said. "We didn't see any action in Colombia though."
"Sounds like you guys have had your hands full with demons." The woman finished her grits and stood up, tray in hand. "Take care. My squad has to hunt down runners and vamplings today."
"Vamplings?" I asked.
Another Templar answered. "Vampire zombies."
The woman made a face. "If a young vampire tries to turn a human, it usually fails and turns them into the walking, hissing, blood-sucking dead."
&
nbsp; With that pleasant thought, the other Templars rose and left, leaving Tyler and me alone in the mess hall.
"Well, it sounds like things aren't calming down much for the Templars." I stirred the grits with my spoon and contemplated eating them.
"From the way Vallaena was talking, I think the vampires are the least of their worries." Tyler had already cleaned his tray and looked at the food left on mine. "What are we going to do today?"
I set the tablet George had given me on the table. "I'm going to do some research."
"I need to stretch my legs." He stood and picked up his tray. "Want to take a walk?"
"Sure." Spending some down time with my love sounded wonderful. I took a bite of grits and discovered they were quite tasty. After finishing them, we stacked our trays with the others.
I grabbed the tablet then Tyler and I took the levitator to ground level and stepped outside. Cool air greeted my lungs while gray clouds threatened rain.
"We need more clothes," I said, wishing I had a sweater to pull around me.
"Yeah, but we can't exactly go back to the condo and get some." Tyler stopped walking and looked toward the barn. "Maybe George would let me borrow his car again."
"Doubtful." I started walking toward the white fences in the distance where I presumed lay a horse pasture. I handed Tyler the arctablet and took out my phone to send George a text. We need more clothes. Can we use your car to sneak into the condo?
While I waited on his reply, I sent Jack a text as well. Find anything new?
Jack replied quickly. Someone at Trax Worldwide opened the program. Looking into it now.
I sent him a reply. Great! Tyler and I are in hiding so I won't be at work until this blows over.
Isabel told me. Be careful.
George sent me a reply seconds later. We'll go by the condo later this afternoon before your orientation class.
I let Tyler read it.
"Ugh, I can't stand this," he said. "I feel trapped."
"We're not trapped, just limited." I took his hand. "I'm sure George's people will have that video ready soon, and we can go back to our normal lives.
He barked a laugh. "Normal."