by L. L. McNeil
‘They usually do come from their own dimension. Most worlds aren’t hot enough for their eggs to hatch. But considering my world has dragons, it...lends itself to being a little warmer than most.’
Seila swallowed. That was useful to know. She didn’t think she’d come across any demons born in this dimension—not that she was entirely sure she’d know the difference—but if she did encounter any, they’d be harder to kill.
‘So, what happened to your family? Are they...all gone?’ Damon asked. And then, as if thinking, he hurriedly added, ‘demons killed my parents, too.’
‘My mother is still alive. One Elite Demon is no match for the Dragon Queen,’ Tress said, a strange kind of bitter pride in her voice. ‘My father, too, although I haven’t seen him since I was very young. Gorath has managed to take a handful of my siblings, but most of us cross to other planes. It’s a lot of effort for Gorath to hunt each of us down.’
‘Why’s he fixated on you, then? If he has, what, fifteen others to choose from?’ Seila asked.
‘Nine others, now,’ Tress corrected. ‘And he’s fixated on me because I’m the best of them. I hurt him the first time. Badly. And he now wants me dead before anyone else.’
Seila could understand that. Sekki had been obsessed with killing Fallow. Gorath seemed to share the same trait. If Tress’s older siblings had other, more powerful dragons and had still fallen to Gorath—six of them, if her numbers were right—then Tress really was a cut above them.
The problem was that Tress knew that all too well. She’d have a big enough ego being royalty, but being royalty and a skilled assassin? That explained her pretentious tendencies.
‘Of course, as Gorath was born in my dimension, it means my axes can hurt him. Nothing else will.’
Seila wondered if all of Tress’s siblings were as arrogant as she was. Of course, if they all fought with weapons from their home dimension, Gorath wouldn’t stand a chance. ‘Why don’t your siblings come here? Together, you could easily overpower him?’
Tress scoffed. ‘Most have their own vendettas against demons, or Phantoms.’ She gave Seila a pointed look.
Seila wanted to ask what on earth the problem was with Phantoms, but considering this was the most she’d been able to get Tress to talk, she didn’t want to push her luck by changing the subject. Nor did she want to rise to the princess’s bait.
‘Once Ashante is able to find Gorath’s Mirage and we seal it, he’ll be trapped here, won’t he? We’ll halve his power, just like we did with Sekki.’ Damon grinned, like he’d just solved a puzzle.
Seila frowned. ‘Wait. Seal his Mirage...won’t that cut off your link to your home dimension, too?’ That explained Fallow’s questioning when Delgo had suggested going after the demon’s Mirage.
Tress faffed around with her clothes, tightened her belts and double-checked her axes were secured to her hip.
Seila waited. She’d already got far more out of the dragon princess than she had ever before, and she didn’t want to push her luck, so she waited for Tress to be good and ready before she answered.
Eventually, once Tress had nothing left to tighten or sort out, she looked up. ‘Technically, yes. But I didn’t come here through that Mirage, did I? I’d have been far closer on Gorath’s trail if I had.’
‘Yeah, that’s right. You came through the mist and chucked one of your axes at me!’ Damon said, although his tone was lighter and jovial.
Tress shrugged. Seila wasn’t surprised that she didn’t apologise. She didn’t think she’d ever see those words come from Tress’s lips. ‘True. I have my own way of crossing dimensions. Fallow and Delgo have their methods, too. Mirages aren’t the only way you can travel interdimensionally.’
Seila’s eyes widened. She wondered whether you had to be of royal blood or be an intensely magical creature in order to access such a power. ‘How do you do it?’
Tress laughed. ‘I’m not spilling all my secrets to you, Phantom. The last thing I want is more of your type in my world.’
Seila frowned. ‘I didn’t say I would go to your world. I don’t want to be eaten by a dragon.’
‘But that’s where I’m from. If I showed you how I travelled, you’d end up there.’
‘But...didn’t you say that you’d travelled to other dimensions? While you were hunting Gorath?’
‘I did. But...look, it’s just not how it works. I’m not going to spend a month teaching you about dimensional travel, and I’m not giving you the keys to my own world. So, just accept that.’ Tress folded her arms across her chest as if that was the end of the matter.
Seila opened her mouth to object, but decided against it. She knew when she’d been beaten, and Tress was more stubborn than a mule. She wasn’t going to get more information out of her unless Tress wanted her to know.
‘I’m surprised Claes or Fallow haven’t come running,’ Tej said, changing the subject and turning his attention to Caramond House. ‘With all the commotion out here.’
Seila agreed, but Sierra circled high above, and she understood that Fallow would know. She mostly thought Tej was taking all this in his stride. If she’d made a mistake and someone had wanted her dead for it, she wouldn’t look very favourably upon that person.
Tej was far too forgiving. Seila supposed that was probably Amber’s influence.
‘I’m sure they know. And I’m sure they don’t care. They aren’t your babysitters,’ Tress said coldly.
Tej took that in his stride as well. ‘I apologise for trying to look at your axes. Maybe you can show me them sometime, without the dragons trying to eat me?’
Tress shrugged and did a poor job of hiding her smile. ‘We’ll see.’
‘Anyway, you’re the one who has explaining to do,’ Seila said, jumping on her opportunity to knock Tress off her high horse. ‘Sekki’s jewellery. What did you think you were doing by taking it? Tej made that mistake once, and as reckless as he is, he isn’t stupid enough to make it again.’
Tej looked sheepish but didn’t reply.
‘I didn’t know what would happen if I took it. I thought it might be valuable.’
‘They’re diamonds. Of course they’re valuable!’ Damon said.
‘Not like that,’ Tress snapped. ‘I meant valuable to me in my hunt for Gorath. If Lesser Demons were attracted to them, and Gorath is trying to increase his power, I thought there might be something there for me. Some way I could find Gorath, lure him somewhere, perhaps. I hadn’t realised so many demons would come after us, and certainly not at Caramond House.’
‘Bad timing,’ Seila said.
‘You aren’t wrong,’ Tress said with a sigh. ‘Why were you watching me, anyway?’
Seila blinked. ‘I was just keeping an eye out. You walked into the garden. You left me alone, I left you alone.’
Tress nodded slowly, as though she didn’t quite believe what Seila had said. ‘Yes, you spend a lot of time out here, don’t you? Are you looking for something, Phantom?’
Seila had no idea what she’d done wrong or what Tress was accusing her of. ‘Is there a problem with sitting atop a pillar? It’s quiet there. I like it.’
‘Quiet.’ Tress repeated and stared at the pillar that Seila usually sat upon. ‘Quiet from demons?’
Seila narrowed her eyes.
‘I’ll take that as a yes, then. It’s a problem you Phantoms have, isn’t it? Always hunting demons with no regard to the safety of others or the consequences of your actions?’
‘You’re hardly one to talk about the safety of others. Your dragons nearly ate Tej!’
Tress smirked as though she’d won some small, private victory that no-one else was aware of. ‘I’m going inside to change. Do let me know if you hear any other demons approaching.’
Seila huffed at she watched Tress go. She’d been persuaded to stay at Caramond House because of Damon and Tej. Tress was sorely pushing her to leave it.
‘What problem does she have with Phantoms?’ Damon asked. ‘If it weren’t fo
r you, Seila, we’d have probably died a hundred times over already.’
‘There’s no “probably” about it. Without me, you’d be dead. Without her,’ she nodded her head, ‘we’d all be much happier.’ She wasn’t going to fool herself. Tress had saved them before, and without her axes, Gorath probably would have wiped them all out before Fallow and Delgo had returned. But she was certain that they would be happier without Lady High And Mighty Tress breathing down their necks.
She did wonder what her history was with Fallow. And why Fallow had allowed the princess to be a part of her Kouzlo. Admittedly, she wasn’t one of the core members, like Claes or Delgo, because she came and went as she pleased. She supposed Tress was reasonably efficient at killing demons. And she had introduced herself as a demon assassin.
With the Kouzlo ranks thinned after months under Sekki and his demons, she supposed Fallow had taken whatever help she could get. And with Tress always leaving after, it was a small annoyance to endure every so often for the desired result of dead demons.
‘You know what she said...about Gorath wanting to wipe out her whole family bloodline?’ Seila asked, giving voice to her thoughts.
‘Yeah?’ Tej and Damon agreed.
Seila tilted her head, trying to remember details of the battle against Gorath and his demons. ‘She froze, didn’t she? Panic? She didn’t move for ages…?’
‘Rooted to the spot,’ Tej said.
‘Right, right. So. She was a sitting target for most of the battle? Even after Gorath arrived?’
‘What’re you getting at?’ Damon asked, impatient.
Seila frowned. ‘I’m just thinking, that’s all. If she was a sitting target, and Gorath was there, and Gorath apparently wants her and all the rest of her family dead, why didn’t he attack? Take the opportunity that was right there in front of him? And don’t say it was because you were guarding her, Tej, because my sword did nothing to him. Neither would your crossbow bolts.’
Tej thought about it for a moment. ‘Gorath just kind of...watched stuff happen. He didn’t even fight. Not really. Not until you took him on with those axes.’
‘Exactly. And even after Fallow came back, he didn’t flee straight away. He tried to get closer but was blasted away by her magic.’
‘So...you’re asking why didn’t Gorath kill Tress while he had the chance? While she wasn’t any threat to him?’ Tej asked, putting two and two together.
‘That’s exactly what I’m asking.’
‘Just a shame you can’t fly up to Gorath and ask him,’ Tej said.
‘Why not ask Tress?’ Damon suggested.
Seila sighed. ‘After this morning, she’s not going to tell me anything. I’m still not sure why she actually told us all about her family line and where she comes from. I don’t care what you two think, or what Fallow says, but I don’t trust her. There’s something about her that’s...off. And it’s more than just her arrogance.’
‘Like what?’ Damon asked.
Seila stared at Caramond House, at the Orangery where Tress had returned. ‘I’m not sure. But just watch your backs around her.’
‘She has an issue with you. Or Phantoms,’ Tej said. ‘I think you’re just projecting that back onto her.’
Seila pursed her lips. Perhaps. Perhaps not. But her gut instinct had never led her wrong before. Not about demons, or people. Or, in this case, other Kouzlo.
Damon and Tej began walking back towards the house. ‘She’s a princess,’ Damon said, calling over his shoulder to Seila. ‘Not like we meet loads of royals every day, is it? Who knows what they’re like.’
Seila frowned and followed them. She was certain they wouldn’t be like Lady Tress Vitali.
Ashante and Fallow worked together, melding their powers to scry for Gorath using his fang as their focus point.
Seila watched with interest. She’d never seen Enchantresses work before.
They’d wrapped the fang in some sort of thin paper that fluttered as if there was a constant wind around it. The handful of tiny diamonds that Tress had brought back were also nearby, but Seila didn’t think that they were part of the spell.
The two Enchantresses had taken over the Orangery. The piano and furniture had been shoved to one side, right up against the wall and out of the way. The demon tooth had been placed in the centre of a drawn circle on a small table near the room’s centre, flooded by sunlight from the glass walls and ceiling.
Power thrummed from the floor, light danced across the room like wisps of smoke, appearing for a moment only to vanish a second later.
At first, Seila hadn’t been sure she was allowed in, but Delgo beckoned her. ‘The lightshow is just an after-effect of their magic. It won’t hurt you.’
Seila wasn’t entirely convinced, but Delgo had no reason to lie. If anything, he’d forbid her from entering if her presence would do something to affect Fallow—whether it was distraction or putting her in danger. The fact Delgo welcomed her with open arms went a great deal to reassuring her that there was no issue with her watching Ashante and Fallow work.
Seila sat on a small chair near the door and pulled up a cushion to her chin. Delgo hovered somewhere to her left, while Fallow and Ashante took the centre of their room. ‘Have they made much progress?’
Delgo shrugged. ‘Not as far as I can tell. But it’s a long spell, and Gorath is powerful. He’s also not like other demons, and he’s as slippery as a fish out of water.’
Seila could understand that. Especially after what Tress had said about him being born in her world. ‘Are there other demons like Gorath? Ones who were born here? In this world?’
Delgo said, ‘A few crop up from time to time. But your world isn’t hot enough, isn’t anywhere near hot enough. Demons don’t like to travel far to spawn. The only place habitable would probably be inside a volcano.’
Seila dreaded to think how hot Tress’s home world really was. She supposed if they had dragons, anything was possible. If Sierra had watched events and also listened to their conversation, Fallow would know all about it. And so would Delgo. She decided to remain blunt, ‘Do you trust Lady Tress?’
‘Of course. Don’t you?’
Seila pursed her lips. ‘She doesn’t like Phantoms.’
‘A lot of people don’t like Phantoms. How many friends do you have? Or have you ever had? I’ll bet you can count them all on one hand.’
Seila looked away. Just because she was a loner didn’t mean she was unlikable. Did it? She just needed to kill demons. That was what drove her on. It didn’t leave a lot of time for much else—friendship included.
‘You see?’
Seila sighed. ‘I don’t see why Tress shouldn’t like Phantoms. A lot of people prefer their own company.’
Delgo nodded sagely. ‘Yes, that’s true enough. There’s something different about Phantoms, though. They’re rare enough. And when they do turn up, they do an awful lot of damage during their hunts.’
‘Really? How many Phantoms have you met? How many do you know?’
‘You’re the first, but I know of them. Phantoms get stronger after every demon they kill. What do you think the most powerful ones are like?’
Seila didn’t need long to think about it. If Tress was a princess, then having Phantoms carving up her land and slaying her people wouldn’t be something she enjoyed having to deal with. Seila was about to say as much to the Djinni when the lights in the room abruptly flickered bright white.
‘Here we go.’ Delgo rubbed his hands together.
Magical energy pulsed through the air, converging around the demon’s tooth. Seila watched as it glowed and floated off the floor.
‘What...what’s happening?’ As she watched, the tooth rotated in place as though caught in a powerful torrent.
And then it cracked, split apart, and a dozen shards fell to the floor.
11
Ashante paced around the reception room, up and down, past the fireplace. The logs within were cold, the ashes from the previous fire still
waiting to be swept away and tidied. Ashante chewed the inside of her lip, her brows furrowed deeply in thought.
‘I told you. Only I can deal with Gorath,’ Tress said, smug as ever. She’d recovered whatever pride she’d lost after the battle in barely three days, and was back to her usual, arrogant self.
Seila much preferred Tress when she was moping around feeling sorry for herself.
‘That shouldn’t matter. I’m using an object to find its parent. Like one half of a pair of shoes. It shouldn’t matter where those shoes originate!’ Ashante had raised her voice, frustration fuelling her. ‘I’ve never had this problem before. Never. I’ve been tracking for twelve years!’
Fallow sat in her usual spot on the sofa, deep in the cushions, a mug of something hot and minty clasped in her hands. ‘It was an opportunity. We explored it. It’s now been ruled out.’
Seila had to appreciate Fallow’s pragmatism. But she keenly felt Ashante’s frustration. It had been three days since Gorath’s attack on Caramond House and they were still no closer to finding him or the Mirage he’d come through.
While Seila would prefer to find the Mirage—so her Sieken Blade would actually do some damage—at this rate, she’d be happy to take one of Tress’s axes and take him on a second time. There’d been no demons to hunt anywhere near, and the itch to move and travel was already more than a nuisance.
More than that, if she didn’t slay another demon within the next week or so, and take its power, she’d begin to weaken.
Too long without power, and she’d be in real trouble.
Seila had spent hours out on her pillar, eyes closed, ears and mind scanning for anything near. Even a little Toxic Fang would be something.
Fallow had demanded they all stayed put for the time being. Although Gorath was a clear threat and needed to be dealt with, he wasn’t an imminent one. Fallow’s territory was clear of demons for the first time in living memory, and she was happy to enjoy the peace while it lasted.
Lady Tress was equally frustrated. She didn’t have a lead on Gorath and didn’t want to waste her own power by returning to her dimension while knowing he was here.