by L. L. McNeil
Seila didn’t care. She’d never in her life let anyone so much as touch her sword, and here she was giving it to a reckless human with a penchant for crossbows. But he was almost out of bolts and there were still demons to deal with. At least her sword had no trouble cutting them down. He just needed to swing it.
She darted back, grabbed both of Tress’s axes.
‘What are you doing?’ Ashante hissed.
‘No time.’ Seila wrenched them from Tress and was back in the air with a flap of her wings, darting straight towards Gorath. Now she’d see whether Tress really had been telling the truth, or if she was just full of hot air.
She flew over the raging fires, the roaring demons. Flew past Malsiador and avoided a jet of fire bursting from the dragon’s throat. Flew straight up to where Gorath stood, commanding his troops like an army general. She tightened her hold on the axes, their incredible weight unfamiliar in her grip, and hurled the first one directly at Gorath’s head.
The Elite Demon ducked, and the swirling axe shot past him and embedded itself in a tree trunk.
Cursing her luck, Seila shot forward, brandishing the second axe.
Gorath raised his arms to meet her attack, but she twisted around them and slammed the axe blade deep into his forearm.
Blood burst from the wound like a torrent, covering Seila’s chest. She coughed and span away, the heat of the demon’s blood burning her skin. She wiped it off her chest and throat with her free hand and hurtled towards him again for another strike.
Gorath backhanded her as she approached, his movement so sudden and strong that Seila was sent flying off. She righted herself before she slammed into the trees on the edge of the grounds, and hovered in place. Her heart pounded with excitement at the chance to slay him. She’d drawn blood, which was more than could be said for Sekki.
She flew again. This time she was going to carve him right across the middle.
But Gorath had realised she carried a weapon that could harm him. He opened his gaping jaws to bellow at her. The ferocity of that noise turned her blood to ice, but she charged forward, regardless. Fought through the fear and kept her eyes locked on the target.
Something heavy knocked the breath from her, and she tumbled from the air and onto the grass. A pair of Marauders loomed over her, mouths salivating and eyes burning red. The larger of the two sprang, slashing at her with its massive talons. Reacting on instinct, Seila threw up her arm and the demon wedged itself onto Tress’s axe.
More blood poured from the gaping wound in its chest. The demon struggled for several seconds, then went limp.
Struggling to wrench the axe free, Seila kicked at the demon, tried to shove it away. The second Marauder didn’t give her the chance. It charged forward and crashed into Seila, its tusks impaling the first demon, sandwiching Seila between the body of the dead Marauder and its own jaws. Tress’s axe was still lodged deep in the demon’s body, its blood continued to slick the handle, and Seila couldn’t get a firm grip on it. She’d never realised how much of a bonus it was that her Sieken Blade absorbed demon blood. It did more than give her extra power—it kept the sword clean and easy to wield.
She wriggled around, trying to get away from the still alive Marauder. But it had wedged its tusks in so deep into the hide of the other demon that it could neither get closer to Seila to bite, nor back away to free itself.
Seila pressed herself close to the bulk of the dead demon, let go of Tress’s axe, and clambered up and out of her trap.
There was still the other axe somewhere. She took a second to look around for it, checked by the tree it had been flung into, and found it missing. With a curse she glanced down, and spotted the metal hilt reflecting dragon-fire. Gorath was still after her, so she leapt into the sky and powered towards the axe.
Snatching up the hilt while still airborne, Seila wheeled around to face Gorath. This time, she gained altitude. She didn’t want another Marauder to be able to leap up and reach her.
Gorath was all hers.
Grabbing the short axe shaft with both hands, she dived towards Gorath again. The Elite snarled up at her, frothing at the mouth in his rage. He lifted his claws to meet her, beat his wings and left the ground.
Seila screamed in fury and brought the axe down at his head with all her strength.
Gorath turned at the last second, and the flat of the axe struck his mouth and nose. The force of the blow drew more blood, but it wasn’t a fatal wound. It was a minor inconvenience.
Gorath raked his claws along Seila and she gasped in pain when they connected. He slashed at her with his other hand, aiming for her wrist. Pain shot through her arm and she dropped the axe.
Her own blood dribbled from a wound on her chest and throat, and she flew higher, away from him and out of range of his claws. She hovered and tried to catch her breath.
Far below, Ashante and Tress still stood in the shadow of the hedge maze, and Tej seemed to be doing a good job of keeping the Lesser Demons from getting too near. In the centre, Claes and Damon were back to back, surrounded by a ring of fire.
No more demons clambered over the wall to join in the fray, but there were already more than enough of them in the grounds to win. Seila had a sneaking suspicion that Gorath had known that, and calculated the amount of Lesser Demons he needed with him to finish them off.
She shook her head. It was too much. They weren’t strong enough, experienced enough.
Only Tress had fought Gorath before and she was out of action.
She sucked in another breath, tried to ignore the pain rippling along her right arm and across her chest. Gorath’s strikes hadn’t been too deep, but they were bleeding a lot, and they stung. She didn’t know if she’d be fast enough to avoid another blow from the Elite before she got close enough to take his head and bring an end to the fighting.
He wasn’t like any demon she’d ever encountered before.
Steeling herself for another strike, despite the odds stacked against her, Seila brushed loose strands of hair out of her eyes and prepared to dive. She couldn’t run from this fight. Her pride wouldn’t let her. And as much as she desperately longed for her soul, for the power slaying an Elite Demon with her Sieken Blade would give her, she knew her sword wasn’t able to defeat it. Only Tress’s axes had made the slightest difference. Seila had to use the tools and resources that were available to her.
She wanted to win, whatever it took.
Chaos reigned in the garden. Demons surrounded Tej, though they didn’t dare approach now that he wielded her Sieken Blade. He wiped his forehead before clasping the sword tightly with both hands. Damon’s flames roared almost without control, burning anything and everything in their path. Ashante shook Tress, who was still not moving.
Gorath was for the taking, but the others wouldn’t last long. She needed to get to them, and she needed to get to Gorath, and she didn’t have the time to do either.
If she fought the Lesser Demons, the others would have room to breathe. But there were so many of them, she wouldn’t get another chance to go for Gorath. And yet if she went for the Elite, the others wouldn’t last.
She didn’t know what to do.
Her gaze flicked between the two, and she’d almost made a decision, when she saw purple smoke coiling in the centre of the hedge maze. From her height, she had a clear view of most of the grounds and the lake, but everyone else was on foot. Even Gorath had landed again, Lesser Demons scrambling over each other to be near his feet.
No-one had noticed the purple smoke.
‘Delgo…?’ She whispered. There was only one creature that she knew who produced purple smoke, and that was only when he used his magic. If Delgo had chosen now to return to Caramond House, his timing could not have been any better.
She ignored the fact that he’d be saving them all from a second Elite Demon in as many weeks, and took the reinforcements with a positive attitude.
The smoke thickened, coalesced into a rough silhouette.
‘Com
e on Delgo...Quickly, quickly…’
Then, she realised that there were two silhouettes.
Seila’s eyes widened and her heart thumped harder. Delgo and Fallow had come back.
The rush of power that filled Caramond House at Fallow’s arrival dropped Seila from the sky. She fell like a stone, and was only able to fan out her wings at the last second to avoid crashing to the ground. Seila immediately saw and felt the enchantments flash into life. A dome of light covered the grounds, passed over the walls, and disappeared into the countryside beyond. Crackles of electricity rippled across the shimmering, shifting lights, changing colour from green to purple, blue to pink.
The Lesser Demons cried out, spinning around and slashing or biting at the air. The force of the magic drew them back, and dozens upon dozens of them slid across the burning grass and were flung over the wall.
Seila felt the pull of Fallow’s magic and dug her heels in. It was an explosion without the bang, a pressure that forced the demons back. Even Gorath struggled against it. He snarled, tail lashing, but couldn’t take a step closer to Caramond House.
Fallow stepped out from the maze, Delgo at her side. She raised both arms, and her enchantments intensified.
Goosebumps rose along every patch of bare skin, and Seila wrapped her arms around herself. She watched, fascinated, as Gorath roared his fury to no avail.
He tried to press forward, but Fallow’s magic was too great. Blood dribbled from his mouth and nose, he tried so hard to fight against the Enchantress’s power. He beat his wings, dropped to all fours and tried to claw his way forward.
All the other Lesser Demons had gone, blasted out of the grounds by Fallow’s enchantments. Only Gorath remained. He glared at Fallow and Delgo, tried to crawl towards her.
Seila turned and ran to the nearest tree. She used its heavy trunk as a shield from Fallow’s power. It was like a wind pressing against her body, telling her to move in one direction. The lights flickered overhead, and with every shift of colour, Fallow’s power strengthened.
Seila had never seen the woman so angry. Her eyes had darkened, her normally immaculate dress was torn and ragged, and covered with grime at the skirt. She looked every bit as dangerous as Seila had always suspected, her mask of calm, polite, culture having fallen away to reveal a creature of pure magic.
Gorath fought for almost an entire minute longer, until Fallow’s power pushed him back. And then he snarled, turned, and flew away from Caramond House.
8
Seila staggered over to Fallow and Delgo while Claes took care of the many small fires still burning away what was left of Fallow’s garden.
They all looked terrible. Damon looked as though a light breeze would send him toppling over, Tej handed her sword back with white-knuckled hands, and Tress appeared shell-shocked. She hadn’t thrown a single blow at Gorath, which Seila found deeply frustrating considering she’d done nothing but talk of hunting the Elite since she’d turned up.
Even Ashante, who had not been involved with the fighting, sported several cuts on her face and hands.
But they were all alive, and they’d managed to fend off Gorath’s surprise attack.
‘It seems you were correct about Gorath returning,’ Fallow said to Tress, her voice as calm as ever. Seila wasn’t sure why, but she found the Enchantress’s voice soothing. As if listening to her meant that everything in the world would be all right.
Tress nodded, mute.
Fallow glanced at Ashante who subtly shook her head. Fallow pursed her lips, then turned her attention to Seila and the others. ‘You fought well, my Kouzlo.’
Seila didn’t think Fallow looked as well recovered as she’d assumed she would. There were still dark smudges under her eyes, and she appeared thin, her dress hanging loosely off her frail frame. Nothing like how she’d been after Sekki, of course, but not quite at one hundred percent.
‘We were nearly wiped out,’ Tej said. He held his empty crossbow and shook his head. ‘I thought demons couldn’t get into this place! What the hell happened?’
Fallow leaned on Delgo for support. ‘That’s true, usually. But I was away longer than I’d thought I would be, and my enchantments faded. Normally it wouldn’t be an issue, but I hadn’t expected another Elite Demon to turn up so soon. And certainly not Gorath, of all of them.’
‘My blade didn’t even touch it,’ Seila said.
Fallow nodded gravely. ‘Yes. He’s quite the demon, isn’t it?’
Seila approached Tress and handed her the axe she still held. ‘Here. I think the other one is still embedded in one of those Marauders over there.’
Tress took the axe and stared down at it, then over to the two Marauders who were locked together in death. She wandered over as if in a daze.
‘What’s wrong with her?’ Seila asked.
‘Panic. Like I told you,’ Ashante said, a hint of irritation in her tone.
‘But all she talks about is killing Gorath. She won’t shut up about it,’ Damon said. His voice trembled slightly, but he stood firm. ‘She’s hunted him for years!’
‘Fear affects us in different ways. I suspect saying something and being confronted with it before you’re quite ready is something else,’ Fallow said. ‘I imagine she wanted to have the advantage, take on Gorath when she was ready. To have him appear at Caramond House, where demons should not be able to set foot, would make anyone tremble.’
Seila wasn’t sure about that. If you spoke about fighting something but froze when the opportunity came along, that was a weakness. Especially after everything Tress had said to Damon about him being a little pup who needed more training. ‘When will she be herself again?’
‘Shouldn’t be long. Actually, Delgo, would you be so kind?’ Fallow said.
The Djinni nodded. ‘Sure. Let Claes clear things up out here. We’ll go inside and get sorted. Tea?’
Seila couldn’t believe it.
Tea.
Again.
After taking her first sip of the hot, sweet drink, Seila reconsidered Fallow’s obsession with the stuff. She hadn’t realised how thirsty and tired she was after both the battle and enduring Fallow’s enchantments. Sitting down somewhere comfortable with a hot cup of tea brought all that to light.
By the time Tress had retrieved her second axe and joined them inside, she had something of her arrogant self back again. Seila ignored her. She could gloat later on. She had a dozen questions she wanted to ask the assassin, but needed her to be fully in her right frame of mind before she did.
Chief among which was—why were her axes so much better than her Sieken Blade?
Her sword had cut apart demons with such efficiency that she’d never considered what might happen if it couldn’t. The blade gleamed, fresh after every kill. It materialised when she needed it, slayed demons, and funnelled their energy into herself.
Even against Sekki, an Elite Demon, she’d been able to carve into him. Sure, he’d healed immediately after, but she’d still done damage. Gorath, on the other hand, had deflected the strongest attack she’d ever dealt as though he were made of stone. She’d been terrified her sword would shatter as a result of that high speed impact.
Perhaps there was some way of improving her sword? Asking Ashante, or Fallow, for some kind of enchantment would be the best course, wouldn’t it? If Fallow’s enchantments could be applied to Caramond House, couldn’t they be applied to her sword?
It was possible that Fallow knew—for Fallow seemed to know everything—but Seila also didn’t want to bombard her after just arriving. And that was another question. Where had Fallow been?
‘Are you back to full strength, now?’ Seila asked the Enchantress directly.
Soto purred on her lap, kneading his claws into her thighs. Fallow stroked him gently and paused at Seila’s question. She studied her for a long while. ‘For the most part, yes. You won’t need to worry about demons breaking into Caramond House now I’m back.’
‘Good. I’d rather not have to go throu
gh that again,’ Seila replied. She sipped her tea.
‘Damon. Your powers have grown since I last saw you. Excellent progress,’ Fallow said, turning away from Seila.
Damon glanced up. Soot covered his forehead and there was ash in his hair, making him look forty years older. He ran a hand through it, sending dark clouds into the air. ‘Thanks. Claes is a great teacher. I’ve been doing all I can outside of work.’
Fallow’s eyes narrowed slightly, but she didn’t comment on it. ‘Good. And your runes? How are they coming along?’
‘Er, a bit slower. But I’m getting there.’
Fallow nodded, though she didn’t seem at all convinced by his answer. She turned to Tej. ‘Delgo tells me you’ve improved, also. You’ll need a new supply of bolts for your crossbow, I expect?’
Tej took the compliment in his stride. He grinned broadly and nodded. ‘Please.’
‘I’ll get right on it.’
‘Where did you go?’ Seila asked, trying to keep the topic on something that she had an interest in, while also taking advantage of Tress’s uncharacteristic silence.
‘To recover my power,’ Fallow replied coolly.
Seila narrowed her eyes. ‘Yes. But where? Somewhere here? Another country? Another dimension?’
‘Does it matter?’ Delgo asked, stepping in.
Seila shrugged. ‘I just like to know all the details. It may be useful in case you disappear again and we need you.’
Fallow smiled. ‘You needn’t worry, Phantom. I’m not going anywhere. The Kouzlo is stronger with so many of you here, and it will only grow.’
‘It’s my fault.’
Seila glanced up at Tress. She sat in the armchair closest to the unlit fire and stared into the ashes, shaking her head all the while.
‘What’s your fault?’ Fallow asked, ever sympathetic.
Tress didn’t bother to look up. ‘It’s my fault...Gorath came to the house.’
‘He would have come here eventually.’
‘No. How would he know about us? About Caramond House? He’s travelling through this world, hunting me. If I hadn’t have…’ Tress trailed off, still shaking her head. She pinched the bridge of her nose.