Ghost Monkey
Page 13
Finish him. Then devour him.
Sugriva held one sword at his side. The other, dripping with black blood, rested on his shoulder. "Not we. You. Your brothers are dead."
The mask howled. The demon grew several times and charged. Sugriva parried bites, then dodged out of the way of flesh spikes. Bones extruded to the outside of the muscle and were flung at Sugriva. They caught another warrior who was not paying attention. The warrior stared in shock. Realization swept over the other soldiers: they were not ready for demons.
Finally the demon gave an opening, overextending. Sugriva ducked under, thrust both swords up, and ran along the length of its body. The demon collapsed, bleeding out. It's muscle withered quickly and turned gray.
Eat it! Don't let it go to waste! They wouldn't understand, but we do.
Sugriva dropped to the ground. The voice nagged, but the rage didn't consume him. He laughed. "You have no power, demon."
It was time to return home and do something stupid.
"GET THEM TO THE INFIRMARY," Sugriva said, as he darted toward Divyan's home. The warriors shouted something, likely in the vein of negligence of duty, but it didn't matter. What Sugriva was about to do would make it inconsequential.
The wedding was over, as it was nearing evening of the next day. The sun was setting, and there were a few guests going in and out, likely close friends. He hung from a tree and watched as Prisha wore her wedding gown, a beautiful red sari with gold lacing. Her husband was definitely an imposing figure, a terrifying hawk janaav who could likely swoop in and kill the monkey in a stroke. It didn't matter. His heart was shattered, the city was safe from the demon, someone else could take on the mantle of protector. Sugriva was going to follow in his parents' footsteps.
"General Ajit," Sugriva called. "I've fought demons. I've spilled their blood in the wild. I killed Fangs when no one helped me. I just slaughtered another demon. What have you done? Who have you killed that you are deserving of Prisha's hand? You come in because of your station, because of your birth, and that gives you rights to her? Then the Ashtadash curse all hawk women with boys who are too afraid to fight."
Divyan rushed out of his home and hollered, "What is the meaning of this? You killed the demon, then came here to spread chaos? Did it bite you? Or are you a fool? You are a dog who bites his master's hand and snarls at his family. Shut your mouth, monkey. I strip you of any ranking or purpose. You are an outcaste and exiled under Prince Anka’s authority." Tears streamed down Divyan's cheeks as he delivered the edict.
Prisha's eyes were wide. If he said they slept together there was only one recourse, and she would lose it all, too. But that was the plan. He could save her from her foolishness by speaking out in the moment. She would have no choice but to cling to him in the wild, relying on him for survival.
Destroy her.
Yet her eyes begged, please don't.
Ajit glared, ready to shift and attack—ready to rip Sugriva to shreds.
"Jaya has given me nothing but pain. It has given my family nothing but pain. It mocks me for my inability to turn into a janaav, though I've slain more Fang or demon than any other. When is the last time Jaya fought demons? More are coming. You are not ready. You cling to decrepit traditions. They will be ripped asunder by a war you can’t understand, and this kingdom will burn while you celebrate your small victory over me."
Chapter Fifteen
A Prophet and Monkey
Age of Finality
"Those are strict rules. I know a few things about strict rules." Dameneh smirked. "I was supposed to hold to certain tenants. Abstinence was one of them, and I just couldn't."
Saha sat next to Dameneh, joining them halfway through the story. She squeezed his hand and rested her head on his shoulder.
Dameneh asked, "Are the demons really that terrifying?"
Sugriva looked down at the ground and nodded. "Isn't even the worst of them. I'll tell that story if we don't all end up executed."
"Executed?" Dameneh laughed and shrugged. "I don't think the One is done with me yet."
"You upset their power. Either way, if they don't take your head, they're going to take mine eventually." Since returning to Jaya it felt like his entire life was extended through luck. The luck would run out some day, and he would end up dead.
"I didn't find you on accident. The One has great plans for you." Dameneh stood up and went to Sugriva. The monkey knelt, and Dameneh kissed his forehead. "My people will wonder if you killed me and my wife. We should walk the streets."
"I should return to my people. Being here upsets everyone."
"So what? Let them gossip like old women. We won't be their biggest concern much longer, and you and I will both be needed for that." The little man smiled up at Sugriva, eyes filled with wisdom beyond what Sugriva could understand.
Qas signed in the corner.
Dameneh replied, "Don't worry. He will be a fine bodyguard. The One favors him." She signed again and Dameneh just laughed and walked out, Sugriva in tow. Qas, Sapheen, and Saha followed.
"What are you trying to do?" Sugriva asked. "You run around spouting your religion, and one day it will get you killed."
Dameneh shrugged. The walk brought many people out, some of them sick or injured. Dameneh touched them and uttered a blessing, and the sick and injured were healed. Some he said he could not heal, it was an affliction they were meant to work through. It made Sugriva's insides turn. Why were some to be healed, while others were to suffer? He grit his teeth and scrunched his nose, almost snarling during denials.
"Calm down, Sugriva. This is the Will of the One. I'm to heal those who are sick, so the miracle can be witnessed by others. I'm to let some suffer through their trials because it is a test and burden set before them." Dameneh held Sugriva's hand. "Like you. You've learned much through your pain." The thought of that pain crept into his heart, though the corruption wasn’t there to magnify it.
Dameneh said, "This world is temporary. There is another beyond it. That is our home."
They continued for hours, meeting with the people and healing or not healing the sick. At times, Dameneh would stand in the center of a crowd and preach. Qas was alert, ever suspicious of the crowds.
As Dameneh spoke, Saha approached Sugriva.
She said, "You know he's a great man, right?"
Sugriva nodded.
"He brought together our people and kept us from dying in the desert. Have you been there or heard of it?"
Sugriva nodded, recalling the water witch of the savannah.
"When we needed food, the ground sprouted bread and quail appeared. When we needed water, he struck a rock and a well would form until we drank our fill and loaded our skins." She touched Sugriva's forearm. "I was a rebel. I killed a lot of people. But with Dameneh my skills have purpose, and what I learned has a place, so I can talk to the children about a righteous heart. You have those same insights and more, as you weren't raised under the watchful eye of the One."
Everything started to feel off, like some sort of cult. He was sure something like this was how the Fangs convinced people to join. "I'm sorry." He took a step back. "I'm grateful, but I need time to myself."
Dameneh, from his makeshift pulpit, said, "Sugriva, wait. There are messengers coming for us. We need to go with them."
"What?" It was frustrating, all the little prophecies, the understanding of tongues which were not his own, this ability to take away the corruption within Sugriva. He howled, "How do you know these things?"
Everyone went silent and stared at the monkey who was huffing, skin red, teeth bore. He shifted into his janaav form out of habit, and it caused an audible gasp. Dameneh pointed down the street. "I see them, and they look like they're from Prince Anka. I can't imagine who else they would be here for." The boy chuckled. "Sometimes my visions are a little more mundane."
Sugriva felt stupid, and shifted back to a man. The messengers, along with three guards, said, "Prince Anka invites you to his court in Bahimatt. He w
ould appreciate your presence and participation in finding a peace for your people and his, along with how to proceed in cultivating Bahimatt into the powerful city it once was. Will you come with us to have this meeting?"
"Sugriva will come with." He stepped down from his pulpit and went to the messengers.
"We were told specifically he is not allowed, and if you demand it, we are to assume you come with hostile intentions."
"Assume what you will." Qas and Saha walked up to Damaneh to join him, but he said, "Watch over Sapheen. You won't be able to from where they're leading us. Saha relax."
They walked away with the messengers, and Dameneh looked back at his wife, blowing her a kiss. Sugriva asked, "Did the One say we were returning?"
"No," he said, turning from his wife, brow furrowed. "I have to be honest, Sugriva, that's more a hope. It's rare I know how the event will turn out, I just know it's going to happen. Then I pray and put my faith in the One, that He has more need of me afterward."
THE COURT BRISTLED, staring at Dameneh and Sugriva. They gossiped about the religious doctrine of Dameneh, then extolled the benefits of dharma. General Humbari glared at Sugriva until it felt like the sun bore down on the monkey. Meanwhile, Prince Anka looked concerned. He was not used to being the small fish in the pond. Prince Anka was used to informing kingdoms of what would happen, meeting a few minor requests, but otherwise getting everything he wanted due to Jaya's size. Now he had to negotiate.
Prince Anka put his hands up, and the people went silent. His voice boomed across the strange metal hall. "We are here to speak peace with Dameneh, keeper of his people. Dameneh, we are Jayans, a proud kingdom from the jungle of Sankive. What should we call your people?"
"Some will say G'deshian. Others will say nomads. I am delven. But first and foremost, we are the faithful of the One." Murmurs rippled through the crowd. "We want peace and collaboration."
"I like that word," Prince Anka said. "Collaboration." He let it roll around in his mouth a while, as if tasting some new flavor. "The city of Bahimatt is large. You have more manpower than we do, but we have more of a military than you do. You speak several languages we have never heard, as well as our own, which you profess to having never heard. You lent us scholars, and they read tomes our own scholars could not after years pouring over the texts. We could use your guidance, and you could use our military."
"There are many secrets, though we are only guided to reveal what is needed. We likely read the texts worse than you do, but the One gives us comprehension. Yoshiket is His gift to this world, a bastion in the coming storm."
Rumbling ripped across the people again. General Humbari roared, "Yoshiket, my prince. They use a blasphemous name for our most sacred city. Then he insults us by bringing Sugriva here. We should arrest them both, execute Sugriva, and torture this man-child which looks like a demon. We can hold him hostage so his people do what we say."
Prince Anka held up a hand to silence the bear. "Dameneh, we use the word Bahimatt for the holy city. It is in our texts as such, handed down by Pannee, the first spirit, and we would like to keep with our custom. Where do you get the name Yoshiket?" The prince crossed his legs, and folded his fingertips under his chin.
"The One calls it Yoshiket. The writing we found in the city gives that name, too. Bahimatt was a name given to keep you from finding this city."
Sugriva coughed. Surely the One forsook Dameneh and was looking to have them both executed.
Prince Anka waited for the people to settle down before speaking. "Dameneh, you force my hand, and I only have one recourse. Guards, arrest them and throw them in prison."
Sugriva shifted into his janaav form and prepared to fight, but Dameneh touched him and said, "It's okay."
He addressed the prince. "An army comes from the east. You will need Sugriva. He is a man of peace now, and he will bring them comfort when you want war. They will be a small and heavily armed people, and they are refugees just like you and me. You will have the advantage, but I beg you to act with wisdom and peace, good prince."
The guards bound the two and escorted them to the prisons, and Dameneh said, "I will see you soon."
The door locked. Sugriva asked, "Is there really an army coming from the east, or was it a bluff?"
"They are coming." Dameneh undid the bindings and rubbed his wrists.
"Did your God tell you that?"
Dameneh undid Sugriva's bindings. "No." He winked at Sugriva. "We have scouts, just as you do. But we have the numbers to use our scouts and explore the city, unlike the Jayans. The approaching army is small, but they are skilled warriors. They also have a lot of elementalists."
"Why am I needed to help with the peace?"
"Honestly, you're not. I’m not even sure if I am. But if they knew that, we would likely be dead. Why not tell me a story while we wait on our heroes?"
Chapter Sixteen
Demon of Three Tasks
Age of Men 812
Sugriva harvested taro with the locals, working through the fields. Everyone was of the farmer caste in the middle of nowhere. Sugriva lied to them and said he was a farmer. No one believed him, especially after he killed a tiger. However, they would rather have a tiger-killing liar than dead farmers.
"Sugriva," a little girl cried out. "I made a talisman. It will let the Ashtadash see you. Do you like it?"
Insect dye smeared on woven reeds formed the charm. White paint, probably from local tree bark, was in the center. Hemp rope made it a necklace. He put it over his head, though the string was tight, and he shifted into a monkey to get it on. He shifted back. "Thank you, Upama. I'll always wear it." He rustled her hair.
The girl blushed, waving back and forth with her fingers interlocked. "I'm glad you like it. I'll make you another, just in case you lose that one."
Sugriva laughed. "You are a sweet and tender child, showing love to those who don't deserve it. I'm a dirty and ornery monkey, and you do not need to bother making another."
"You are not a dirty monkey," she howled. "You bathe in the river all the time."
Sugriva coughed from laughing so hard. "You are too precious. Go to your parents. I need to collect more roots."
The girl did as she was told. Sweet Upama was the only villager to regularly talk to Sugriva. Many of them never saw a janaav before, and he was useless as a farmer. Farming required a great deal of discipline and timing, while Sugriva had too much wanderlust and impatience, though Ishku’s teachings helped a bit. Even better, the boring routine kept the corruption in check.
A yelp in the jungle broke him from his thoughts. Sugriva picked up two sickles and sprinted to the cry of Upama. The fool girl was supposed to go to her parents.
Sugriva shifted into a monkey, climbed up a tree, and darted from branch to branch until he was above the girl. There was a shape, and, without thinking, Sugriva flung himself into the air. He slipped the knife from its sheathe and ran through the form, stabbing deep into meat which spewed black blood.
"Demon," Sugriva hissed and jumped back. He shoved Upama behind him, and said, "Run girl. Get back to the village." She obeyed and screamed the entire way.
The demon took form, a large man of fair skin with blood smeared across his mouth. He wore a loin cloth, and his torso was as thick as a tree. He held a bone club. "A monkey and a man. A janaav. Don't see many of you here."
"We are. So are demons. What do you want?" He noticed the smoke on his nails thickened.
"I Mobtachkta. Struck deal with villages, I did. Feed me like beast. I kill other beasts. Ignore me, monkey. I spare you and girl. Stay out of way. I not bleed on field. Torture people." He licked his lips, smearing the blood on his mouth, but not removing it.
"I can protect this village, but I don't want to fight you. There has to be something I could do so you’d move on."
Mobtachkta thought on this proposition, stroking his chin. Finally he said, "Three tasks. Give power. Power to hunt Jaya. You do tasks?"
"Why haven't you done it y
ourself?"
"Demon thrall. Loud. Disliked. No blend in."
"Name the tasks."
"Staff of Earth. Spirits guard. Get you directions. Second in Pindan. Salt in Tomb of Raya. Tell three you get back."
"What's the Staff of Earth and who cares about salt from an old tomb?"
"Staff change size." He scratched at his loin cloth and Sugriva held back nausea. "Salt give strength."
"And the third," he spat out. "What's the third item and what'll you do with it?"
"Fetch and see." He grinned, and as he drooled through his open mouth, it dribbled blood down to the ground.
"I agree." Once he had the items, he could kill Mobtachkta and no one would have to worry about the demon again.
EARTH SPIRITS APPEARED at the temple because men sanctified the ground. There was a large structure, though it looked centuries old. A massive mound built by the spirits hid the sanctuary underneath. Spirits placed two large earth statues on top of the grass mound, though the monuments lacked the finesse of a man-made statue. They were simply rocks connected together through ball joints. The head floated, a perfect orb of onyx which stayed above the abdomen.
Spirits littered the surrounding area, resting on smaller mounds. Some had a body and four long, spindly legs, as if they were spiders. A few were simple pillars put together in the fashion of a body. A fin extruded from the ground, a reminder there were more earth spirits down below.
The spirits all glanced briefly at Sugriva, then went back to their poses. A few smaller ones approached and rubbed against his leg as if an affectionate pet. The dirt from the spirits got on his legs, under his fingernails, and stained his palms. Dead skin was ripped off, and some blood mixed with the dirt. Sugriva kept his manners and did not flinch.