"The Black Lord is coming."
Mirra nodded, shivering a little when the wind gusted as if to confirm his statement. "Elder Mother says that he has crossed into the New Kingdom, and is heading this way."
"He seeks me, to finish what he left undone. No doubt his spies will have told him that I am here, and he fears that I will be cured, and challenge him."
"He cannot set foot on the abbey grounds."
Bane plucked a blade of grass and crushed it. "He will not have to. He will raise an army of trolls and goblins to destroy this place."
"What do you intend to do?"
His eyes flicked to her. "You mean do I intend to fight him to save your Overworld?"
"Yes."
"No."
Tallis gasped. "But you have to!"
His brows shot up in mocking enquiry, and he turned his frigid gaze upon her. "Really? Why?"
Mirra shook her head at her friend. "No, he does not Tal. The choice is his. We cannot tell him what to do."
Bane shot her a weary, resentful look. "Still so pious, healer? I would have preferred to let your friend see if she could persuade me. It might have been entertaining."
"Your idea of entertainment is different from ours. We stand to lose our lives if you do not stop the Black Lord," Mirra rebuked him.
"Yes, even you, especially you, he would like to kill."
"And you would let him!" Tallis cried.
Bane's eyes brightened again. "Why should I not?"
"Because..." The young healer frowned, thinking hard. "Because..." Tallis looked at Mirra for help, but she shook her head.
"You got yourself into it, Tal, you find a good reason."
"All right." Tallis rose to the challenge as a few reasons occurred to her. "Because he is human."
Bane looked bitter. "And hated by my race."
She bit her lip, frowning. "Because the Overworld is beautiful."
"I do not think so."
Tallis' mouth dropped open in surprise, and she shot Mirra an incredulous look. Mirra nodded, confirming the truth of Bane's statement. Tallis cast about once more, then stated triumphantly, "Because you hate the Black Lord."
Bane shrugged. "That does not mean I have to fight him. In fact, a long period of hostilities and insults would be more satisfying than an all-out fight to the finish."
Tallis looked flummoxed as she ran out of reasons. "Because... Mirra saved your life."
Bane shot Mirra an accusing look. "I did not ask her to, and she only did it because she thought I would protect her from the Black Lord when he rose. At least, that is what she told me."
"Yes, that is what I told you," Mirra agreed. "But I did not only want you to protect me. I wanted you to save all of us. But I could not tell you that, could I?"
"You could have, but it would have made no difference." He glanced at Tallis. "There is no good reason for me to fight the Black Lord. I have nothing to gain by it."
"What do you want?"
He looked down at his hands. "There is nothing for me here. My home is in the Underworld. That is where I belong, but my return there does not depend upon my defeating the Black Lord, I can go there whenever I wish. No one can stop me, not even Arkonen." He looked up, his mouth twisted in a bitter smile.
"You cannot return there." Mirra shook her head, longing to reach out to him, but afraid that it would only offend him, since he hated sympathy so much. "We want you to stay here with us."
"We? Who is 'we'?"
"Us, the healers, me, Elder Mother."
"You?" His smile faded. "You should hate me."
"But I do not, you know that."
"Do I?" He glanced down at the grass again. "You want me to save your world, and for that, you would do anything. Even lie. And I am not very good at telling when someone is lying to me."
"I have never told a lie, not to you or anyone else."
"That is true," Tallis volunteered, sensing the tension between them building. "Like the time when -"
"Then tell me," Bane interrupted. "Why did you save me?"
"Because only you can save the Overworld from destruction." She met his gaze. "And because I care about you."
"Care? What does that mean?"
"It is hard to explain. I like to be around you, I enjoy talking to you. I would like to spend a lot more time with you. I do not want you to be hurt, or to die. I want you to be happy. That would make me happy."
"And yet, if I fight the Black Lord, I may die."
"I know, but if you do not, we all will."
"Well, he has just said that he is not going to," Tallis muttered.
"No." Bane shot her an annoyed glance. "I said I was not going to fight him to save the Overworld."
Mirra’s heart grew heavy. "For vengeance?"
"Yes." His gaze returned to the sky, the wind lifting his hair off his shoulders. "After it is done, I shall return to the Underworld. Even if I survive."
Mirra's throat closed in shock, and her eyes stung. Hastily she looked away, unable to speak. Why did he wish to return to that foul place? How could she bear it if he did? A strained silence developed while she stared at the grass by her feet, trying to hide her tears.
Swallowing the lump that blocked her throat, she said, "The cleansing will take many days, I hope we are in time. Already people are starting to flee from him. The roads past the temple are full."
Mirra glanced at Bane, who stared out over the walls at the darkest part of the sky, his eyes narrowed, nostrils flared as if he sensed his enemy's approach. She wondered what he was thinking. How did he feel about attempting to destroy the being he had regarded as his father for his entire life? Her skin crawled when she recalled the Black Lord in all his evil glory, as she had seen him after his ascension from the Underworld.
A pang shot through her at the thought of Bane fighting that monstrous creature, and deep sorrow filled her at the prospect of never seeing him again after that day, whatever the outcome. She wanted to flee to her room and weep, but remained rooted to the spot, swamped by misery. Bane lowered his gaze to her, and she looked away, spotting Elder Mother walking towards them. Ellese's eyes flicked over them and came to rest on Bane.
"It is time."
The Demon Lord rose to his feet, and Ellese turned away, heading back towards the chapel. Bane hesitated, glancing at Mirra, then followed, his cloak swirling behind him in the wind.
As soon as his back was turned, Mirra buried her face in her hands, and Tallis put an arm around her in concern.
"What is it? What is wrong, Mir?"
"He is going to return to the Underworld."
"Well, that is where he belongs, is it not?"
"No!" Mirra lifted her head, revealing the tears that streaked her cheeks. "I do not want him to go."
"Oh, Mir." Tallis tightened her hold on her friend's bowed shoulders. "You do more than care for him, do you not? You love him."
Mirra nodded.
"Why do you not tell him then?"
"Do you think it would make any difference?"
Tallis sighed. "To him, probably not. But at least you would have told him, and then it would be up to him. But how you can love a monster like him is beyond me. He is handsome, admittedly, but he is evil."
"No, I have seen his true nature. He is not evil, just filled with it."
"If that is true, then when he is purged he will change his mind."
Mirra glanced at her friend, forcing a weak smile. "Maybe."
Ellese led Bane to his room, where she turned to face him, holding out a white loincloth.
"You must undress and put this on."
The Demon Lord scowled at her. "Tell me what they will do to me."
"Are you afraid?"
"Tell me."
"It will not be pleasant. We must strip every vestige of the dark power from you before we can heal you. This will take some time, for if we do it too fast, it could kill you. You will be chained to the altar, where the white fire of the goddess will force out the
evil. There may be a lot of pain, so you must be prepared to suffer."
"Why must I be stripped of the dark power before you can heal me?"
"It would be too dangerous to do otherwise. We may be able to push past it, but the evil in you would react against the healing, and you might die. It was a good thing you would not let Mirra try, but then, we knew you would not."
Bane turned and paced the room. "I have the power to destroy the Black Lord now. Why cast it out, only to take it up again?"
"Because if you use it now you will die. Mirra told you that."
"Perhaps." He paused in his pacing, shooting her a sidelong glance. "I would have died out there on the plains, if not for the girl. But I have no use for this world, and it wants me even less. I fight for vengeance, no other reason, so what difference does it make whether I live or die? You offer to heal me as a bribe, to gain my loyalty, but would you still offer it if I told you that I intend to return to the Underworld, even if I survive?"
Ellese nodded without hesitation. "Yes, of course. We do not offer it as a bribe but because we want to heal you. You have suffered enough. You do not belong in the Underworld. This is your home. And you must have the healing."
"I am only in danger when I try to leash the power, and by then the Black Lord will be destroyed. If I die, I will go to the Land of the Dead. It makes little difference to me if I return to the Underworld as flesh or spirit."
Ellese held out a hand in a gesture of pleading, but he stepped around it. "We care about you. We do not want you to die. Once you are free of the power, you will no longer be evil."
"But I will always be the Demon Lord."
"Yes. We cannot obliterate the rune scars from your skin, and you will always be able to Gather the shadows. But so long as you do not, you will have a normal life, albeit a very long one."
"No." He stared out of the window, then turned and paced again. "I do not wish to stay here in this cold, wet land. I see little point in going through your humiliating ritual when I intend to return to the Underworld anyway. It is better this way." He spoke with decisive assurance, as if he had already made up his mind.
Ellese stepped in front of him, stopping his pacing. "You must not throw away your life. You are young. And what about Mirra? She cares for you. You will break her heart."
His eyes glinted with sudden, irrational fury. "I make my own choices, old woman. I am sick of you and that girl trying to run my life. You will not humiliate me, strip and chain me to your goddess' altar. I will face the Black Lord on my own terms, and if I die then so be it."
The seeress softened her voice, knowing that the dark power within him affected his moods. "Why did you come here then, if you did not mean to go through with it?"
Bane turned away, moving over to the bed. "I brought the girl to safety."
"She will not be safe if the Black Lord wins."
"The outcome will be the same, whether I go through your ritual or not."
"Perhaps not. The healing will make you stronger."
Bane's nostrils flared, and his brow furrowed. "I do not need your help, old woman. I agreed to come here for the girl's sake, but you have insulted me and publicly humiliated me with my past, which you had no right to know about. Now you want to chain me up and reduce me to a pathetic, powerless human. I will defeat the Black Lord, and you will not see me again, whether or not I live."
"No. Bane!" Ellese reached for him, but with a surge of chill power, he vanished. She stood stunned, then dread washed over her. He had used the dark power. He had gone to face the Black Lord without the healing, and would die, whether he won or lost. He had no intention of ever seeing his father, and he rebelled against his feelings for Mirra. There was no hope that he would survive the duel without healing, no matter what he thought. Wringing her hands, she left the cell and hurried back towards the chapel, stopping to gaze at the two girls who sat in the garden. Anguish shot through her. Poor Mirra. Goddess, what had he done?
As if reading her thoughts, Mirra jumped up and ran to her, Tallis trotting in her wake. "What is wrong, Mother? Where is Bane?"
Ellese's face twisted with anguish. "He has gone. He refused to go through with the purging. He has gone to face the Black Lord."
Mirra's mouth dropped open in horror. "No! He must not! He will die!"
Elder Mother gazed at the distant lightning with despair in her eyes. "He used the dark power. He may already be dead. He does not care. He did not intend to go through with the healing. He came here only to bring you. He intends to return to the Underworld, dead or alive, but he will be dead, that is certain."
"No!" Mirra turned and sprinted towards the abbey gates, her bare feet flying over the grass.
"Mirra! Come back! There is nothing you can do!" Ellese shouted.
Tallis started after her friend, but Ellese grabbed her arm. "Not you too. You are staying here."
Tallis' face twisted with anguish as she stared at the fleeing white-robed figure.
Ellese made the sign of the Goddess, whispering a heartfelt benediction. "The Lady watch over you, child."
Bane did not Move far. The Demon Lord reappeared just beyond the abbey grounds, where he could summon the demon steed. As the world settled into solidity around him, agony stabbed his temples with hot needles. He cried out, clasping his brow, shocked by the intensity of the pain from using so little power. His knees buckled, and he sagged to the ground, groping for the flask of potion Mirra had given him.
As he waited for the pain to subside, he cursed the Black Lord with all the virulence his hatred could summon. How he would enjoy destroying him. He would avenge the death of the mother he had not known, his father's anguish, and his own humiliation and betrayal. Even the rest of humanity, which he had always scorned, deserved vengeance for the atrocities committed against it.
No one could stop him now, and the healers would not tamper with him. The victory would be his alone. Then he would return to the warm caverns of the Underworld, either to the Land of the Dead, or the Black Lord's empty court, where he would rule for the remainder of his days. A pang of sorrow went through him when he thought of the healer, for he would miss her, but she would be happy, her world freed from the Black Lord's foul reign. He bowed his head as the pain ebbed.
Mirra's lungs burnt as she ran as fast as her legs would carry her, desperation squeezing her heart. She had to stop Bane before he got to the Black Lord. He must not die. She had no idea where he had gone, so she headed for the blackest horizon, where surely the Black Lord was, beneath the lightning that illuminated the sky with brilliant flashes. Thunder growled in the distance, and the cold wind cut through her robe, chilling her. Her legs were numb and her head swam as she sprinted through the narrow stand of trees that marked the edge of the temple grounds and burst into the open again.
Bane knelt on the ground some distance away, and she goaded her tired legs to greater effort as he rose to meet the demon steed that galloped from the forest beyond.
"Bane!" Her shout cut through the stormy air like the lonesome cry of a distant seagull.
The Demon Lord turned, his hair whipping in the wind, his cloak flaring. Behind him, the demon steed reared, pawing the air. Beneath the racing black sky, he and the demon steed made a tableau of ultimate evil. It seemed to take her an eternity to reach him, and when at last she stumbled up to him, she flung herself at him, not caring about his reaction. It seemed as if his arms closed around her, and she sensed the evil strongly in him. Then he shoved her away so violently that she tripped and fell, her tired legs too slow to keep her balance.
"Go back to the temple!" Bane's voice cracked with anger. "Why do you follow me like some damned cur?"
Mirra sat up, gasping for air after her wild run. "Bane... do not go like this. You must be healed first."
"Leave me be! Go back and play with your little friends. I do not need any help from you."
She scrambled to her feet, her legs shaking. "You will die!"
Bane had turned to
wards the demon steed, now he swung back. "Good! Then you will be rid of two monsters! Am I not as bad as the Black Lord, maybe worse? I have no wish to live in a world that hates me. I am the traitor who broke the wards. All of you have used me, he to free him, you to protect you, and now to destroy him. Well, I will! Not for you or your ugly world, but for me! He will pay for what he did to me, and if we are both destroyed, so much the better. I will not stay here, whether I live or die!"
Mirra crept closer during his tirade, her eyes filled with fear. "No, we do not hate you. You are a victim, not a monster. I do not want you to die, none of us do. Whether you stay here or return to the Underworld, the choice is yours, but you must not die."
Bane snorted and turned to the demon steed, but Mirra grabbed his cloak. He spun back, dangerously angry. She thought that he would strike her, but instead he pried her fingers from his cloak, his face carved in harsh, inflexible lines.
"Go back to the temple. You will be safe there. In a few hours it will all be over."
"No, Bane, no, please!" Mirra fell to her knees. "Do not go, do not leave me!"
He stared at her, still plucking her fingers from his cloak, confusion in the depths of his eyes. As fast as he pried her hands loose, she renewed her grip, frustrating his efforts to get free.
"Stop this!" he snarled. "Let go of me!"
A sneering voice made his head snap up. "Well, how sweet. The love sick healer and her lusty Demon Lord."
Dorel stood there, dressed in brown leggings and a bright red shirt, a hunter's cap sitting at a jaunty angle on her red curls. A green waistcoat and sturdy boots completed her outfit, but it was the crossbow she held that caught his attention. It was aimed unwaveringly at his heart, and her brown eyes glinted with cold glee. Mirra froze, staring up at the droge.
"The Black Lord gave me permission to kill you, Bane. I've always wanted to, you know. It quite sickened me, fornicating with a dirty human."
Bane growled, "Had I known I was not a vile thing like you, it would have sickened me too, you damned dead piece of garbage."
Dorel hissed, and her finger whitened on the trigger. He tensed, ready to hurl himself aside, but Mirra sprang up between them. The crossbow's string thrummed, and she was flung back with a soft grunt, a short black bolt protruding obscenely from her chest. At Bane's silent command, the demon steed leapt forward with a roar as Dorel fumbled for another bolt. Orriss slammed into the droge, its fiery hooves slicing through her bloodless pseudo-flesh, shredding her form. The crossbow fell from her hands, and she went down under the hammering hooves.
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