At the Gates of Darkness Part 24

'That should do it,' said an exhausted Laromendis.

'Yes,' agreed his brother. 'If you damage him enough, wear him down, then Amirantha and I should be able to send him back to where he came from.'

'It's not like we're going to have any choice,' said Pug. Looking at Magnus he said, 'We could use Amirantha and Sandreena up here.'

'They're trying to puzzle out what Belasco is doing.'

'I thought you said he was incapacitated.'

'It's difficult to explain, Father, I'm not sure I even understand, but it appears that Belasco is a host for the demon, and killing him will only release Dahun into this realm. Belasco has kept him in check, but at the price of his own freedom.'

Hearing this Gulamendis said, 'By the Ancestors, I need to get down there.' He left the struggle as more human soldiers arrived to fight to the demons.

'This should be over soon,' said Pug, as the company of Keshian dog soldiers and another of Royal soldiers from Muboya hove into view.

Then a loud noise echoed from the pit and a company of flyers erupted out of it, followed by another host of monstrous creatures who scrambled their way up over the edge of the pit and launched themselves into the fray.

'Perhaps not,' said Magnus as he sent a ma.s.sive fireball into the midst of the flyers circling over the attacking human armies.

Gulamendis found Amirantha and Kaspar hovering over the p.r.o.ne form of Belasco, while a disembodied voice bellowed, 'My minions will be here shortly, humans! This cursed magician who confines me will perish, then I shall be free and your deaths agonizing and eternal! Release me now and I will reward you, but my patience is nearing its end!'

Jim Dasher stood ready to end Belasco's life with his dagger, if there was any need. He threw a questioning look at Amirantha.

Amirantha shook his head, and then looked at the elven Demon Master and asked, 'Have you heard anything like that before?'

'I've never heard a demon use the word "patience", nor have I heard of one being confined when in possession of a mortal host.'

Sandreena, now fully recovered, said, 'I've been threatened before, but usually by a demon trying to rip out my throat, not by one trying to strike a bargain.'

'This is unique in my experience, as well,' said the Warlock. 'And my brother, holding true to everything I know about him, refuses to cooperate.'

'You've given me no reason to cooperate, dear brother.' Belasco's voice hung in the air.

'Give me a reason that will persuade you, Belasco.'

'The conundrum is that for me to emerge victorious, I must first rid myself of my demon possessor, and the only means to accomplish this is to first perish.

'Should I perish, however, Dahun will revert to his body, one that will soon be in this realm.'

'Soon?' asked Gulamendis.

'Perhaps it's here now,' laughed Belasco. 'Had you killed me an hour ago, perhaps even minutes ago, he would have been cast back into the Fifth Circle of h.e.l.l, but now...? It may already be too late.'

'I could kill you and find out,' said Amirantha.

'But if you do that, and he appears, what then, dear brother?'

'We may have enough strength to send him back?'

'Ah,may. What if you don't?' What if you don't?'

'What is the truth?' demanded Amirantha.

Gulamendis said, 'I may not be able to get the truth from your brother, but I can try to compel the demon within him to speak the truth, at least for a while.'

'You have a compelling enchantment that powerful?'

'I think so,' said Gulamendis. He looked exhausted, but closed his eyes. 'I will try.'

Long minutes dragged by. The distant sounds of battle punctuated the silence from time to time, until Kaspar asked, 'Is it safe to leave you here?'

Amirantha indicated the dagger in his hand, held mere inches from his brother's throat. 'I don't think you being here makes much difference.'

'Good,' said Kaspar as he turned to leave. 'From the sound of things, they could use a general up there, or at least one more sword.'

Jim looked at Kaspar, who said, 'You stay here. Amirantha might hesitate, but I have no doubt you'll cut Belasco's throat if needed.' Jim nodded.

Amirantha was forced to smile. During the months since he had met Kaspar, he had developed a genuine affection for him. Given the former Duke's reputation, he found it surprising that a former enemy of the Conclave and friend to his mad, dead brother Sidi would prove such affable company; but then he knew what Sidi had been capable of, and judged much of Kaspar's villainy had been Sidi's doing. Jim was also someone the Warlock found likeable, despite having a hard, cold side to him.

Gulamendis said, 'It is done.' To Dahun he said, 'To truth are you bound. What reason have you for this possession?'

It was a question shared by all three of the demon experts in the room; possession was rarely used by more powerful demons. It was against their nature; why trade a more powerful body for a weaker, more vulnerable one? Disguise was the only possible reason, but disguise was hardly necessary given the huge conflict above.

Silence was their answer.

After a long minute, Belasco chuckled. 'Your spell must have worked, elf.'

'Why do you say that?' asked Jim.

'Gulamendis compelled the demon to tell the truth, but did not compel him to answer. His silence tells you he cannot lie to you, so he elects to say nothing.'

Gulamendis looked from Amirantha to Jim to Sandreena, with a beseeching expression on his face. They both shook their heads.

'What do we do now?' asked Sandreena.

'Come up with a bargain for my brother,' said Amirantha.

'What do you propose?' asked Belasco.

'Jim could cut your throat and we could deal with the demon when he gets here,' said Sandreena, her tone leaving little doubt she considered it the most viable option.

Amirantha held up his hand and said, 'A last resort.' To his brother he said, 'We could banish the demon back to the Fifth Circle, now?'

'An exorcism?' said Belasco incredulously. 'You must be joking.'

'Sandreena is the Mother-Bishop of the Order of the Shield of the Weak,' said the Warlock.

'I think I liked her better when she just wished to bash my head in with her mace,' said Belasco. 'That would be quick and easy; death by exorcism is far too slow and painful.'

Sandreena and the two demon masters exchanged knowing looks, and they conceded wordlessly that Belasco was right, the more powerful the demon driven from the host, the more damage endured by the mortal. And no one in the history of any temple had successfully banished a demon king or prince.

Amirantha said, 'Your choice, brother. A quick death and we deal with your demon, or we can try to save you, and then most likely be forced to kill you.'

'You know me well, brother.' There was a long silence, and Belasco said, 'Give me your word that should I emerge from this intact you'll grant me one day's grace to find a safe haven.'

'After all you've done?' said Sandreena.

'That's the bargain,' said Belasco.

'I vote for a quick death,' said Sandreena.

'I think we should try the exorcism,' said Gulamendis.

Jim shrugged. 'I really don't know what's best.'

'That leaves it to you, brother,' said Belasco.

Amirantha said, 'Give me one reason to grant you any mercy. You've been trying to kill me for a century.'

'Well, that's a regret, really. I count it a bad habit, really. I just got so annoyed with you and Sidi...I didn't really think things through.'

Amirantha closed his eyes a moment, then opened them and said, 'You may not be as mad as our brother was, but there's nothing sane about you.

'Let me be clear, I'm leaning heavily towards ending this rapidly, which involves cutting your throat, unless you provide me with a good enough reason why we should risk letting you live, and still have to deal with a powerful demon anyway.'

There was a long silence, then Belasco said, 'I will tell you the truth.'

Amirantha laughed. 'That would be unusual.'

'By the blood of the old woman of the moons, the nightmares of the child in the village, and the bones in the wicked man's hidden grave,' said Belasco.

Amirantha fell silent. He looked at Sandreena and Gulamendis and softly said, 'When we were children we made a pact; we imitated a curse our mother used...' He shook his head. 'It was as close as any of us came to anything sacred. Even Sidi never broke a promise or lied after making that oath.'

'It's the best I can do, brother.'

Amirantha was silent again. After a long moment, he said, Very well. Begin.'

Pug saw the demons before the doorway turn from his group to answer the attack from Jommy's marines. Kaspar arrived and said, 'What's the situation?'

'Chaos,' shouted Magnus. 'Our forces arrived, then a horde of demons appeared out of that pit!'

'It's a ma.s.sive summoning pit; even Amirantha and Gulamendis didn't recognize it for what it was: a demon gate.'

'We have to shut it down!' said Kaspar.

'The problem,' replied Pug, 'is that it might take a while.'

Kaspar looked out at the battle raging beyond the door while Magnus sent another blast of searing energy at a demon charging in their direction. 'Keep discouraging them,' said Kaspar, 'while I get a better look.' He tapped Laromendis on the shoulder and said, 'You up to giving me a boost up to the roof?'

'Certainly,' said the elf. They stepped out the door and Laromendis made a stirrup with his hands. Kaspar stepped up and the tall elf thrust him high enough to allow the General to clamber onto the tiles of the roof.

Magnus stepped outside just in time to destroy a flyer that had spotted Kaspar as an easy target, and the General shouted, 'Thanks!'

Kaspar saw that the activity from the pit had ceased and shouted down, 'I think that's all of them!'

He looked over the battle and cursed himself for not having had a better notion of how this struggle might unfold. He had made one poor a.s.sumption, that a quick strike by overwhelming forces would obliterate a disorganized band of cultists and a few demons.

He hadn't expected that the demons would be armed, organized, and sending reinforcements. Still, his forces were slowly gaining the upper hand through sheer numbers. Which was a good thing, he considered, as it seemed to take three or four human soldiers to best one of the larger demons.

The stench from demon blood was making his eyes water and another flyer almost took his head as it came hurtling out of the night sky. He felt the heat from its flaming body as Magnus dispatched it.

Kaspar sat on the eaves and then dropped to the ground, with an audible grunt. 'I'm too old and tired to be doing this,' he said to no one in particular.

Pug and the others came out of the small building as the ebb and flow of the struggle had drawn most of the combatants to the other side of the large fortress. Kaspar said, 'We've got the upper hand if something doesn't change unexpectedly.' He nodded. 'I've got to find my commanders and see if we can coordinate this a little better.'

He hurried off and Pug turned to Laromendis. 'Why don't you see what your brother and Amirantha are up to down there? Magnus and I will protect this position.'

Laromendis said, 'Of course,' and ran back into the building.

'There's a new war underway,' said Belasco. 'It's been underway for centuries, now. The five demon kings have battled for supremacy since time began, but this new war is something different.'

Amirantha said, 'How is it different?'

The sound of laughter filled the room, both Belasco's and the demon's. The monster's was filled with hate and bitterness, while Belasco's held genuine amus.e.m.e.nt. 'I don't really know,' said the motionless magic user. 'Lies are as much a part of a demon's nature as they are of mine, dead brother.

'When I first began to dabble with summoning it was for the usual reason: I wanted to best you. I tried to kill Sidi once by creating a lich, did you know that?'

'No,' said Amirantha.

'It wasn't well conceived, really, too much emphasis on irony and not enough on learning my craft. Sidi disposed of the monster quickly and I spent the better part of a year living in a very cold cave up in the Northlands, surrounded by ice bears, snow leopards and dark elves.' He sighed, more as an emotional footnote than a real exhalation of breath. 'You'd think I'd have learned, but I really didn't.

'I decided not to conjure a random demon and turn it loose on you; I knew you'd easily defeat it, so instead thought I might subvert one of your spells so that you summoned a creature you weren't expecting. I thought that was very clever.'

'It almost worked,' said Amirantha.

'Almost?'

'I had help. I would have perished had I been alone.'

'Well, that's some sort of consolation.' He paused, then said, 'To learn how to do it I began studying demon lore, much of it familiar to you, I a.s.sume. But I did find a few unusual odds and ends; a scroll here and a book there revealed that there was far more to the demon realm than you'd ever suspected. I wasn't doing this for scholarship, really. I was looking for a clever way to kill my brothers.'

Gulamendis looked at Belasco and then at Amirantha and just shook his head. Sandreena kept her eyes fixed on Amirantha's face.

Amirantha said, 'The demon war?'

'Something is driving the demons. Something came into their realm and struggles with them for supremacy in their own realm,' said Belasco. 'Millions of demons have been destroyed in the fight and three of the kings have united to oppose the invaders.'

'Who?' asked Amirantha.