The Crow King's Wife (26 page)

“Well on one hand it would free Jala for you,
and if that fails well then it will piss you off and pull you from
your mewling depression.” Seth explained with a weak shrug.

“Mewling depression.” Finn repeated dully and
seemed to contemplate the words. After a long moment he gave a
grudging nod. “I suppose that is the best description for me at the
present.”

“Summon the entertainers. Listen to some
music. Devise some new torture for one of the condemned souls.
Visit a temple and fuck an acolyte. Just do something, Finn. Find
some way to get your mind off of what you can’t have. You are a
Divine. You will never have Jala again. You will never lead a
normal life again.” He leaned forward as he spoke forcing Finn to
hold his gaze and willing him to listen to every word he spoke. He
knew it was harsh, but he couldn’t think of a kind way to speak the
words. They needed to be said and Finn had told him to speak
bluntly. “You had accepted it before. Why are you backtracking
now?” Seth added with irritation thick in his voice.

“I don’t know.” Finn admitted sadly. He let
out a heavy sigh and placed both hands over his face rubbing at his
eyes.

“At least some part of that was supposed to
piss you off.” Seth informed him dryly.

Finn’s hands fell away from his face and he
smiled bitterly at Seth. “I know, and it should have, but even when
I kindle the faintest spark of anger it fades too quickly to seize.
Even Fiona isn’t getting under my skin and she normally has me
ready to slit her throat by the time I finish my first cup of tea
in the morning.”

“You are Firym.” Seth reminded him through
gritted teeth.

“I was. Now I’m Death.” Finn corrected
quietly.

“Bloody buggering hell.” Seth muttered darkly
and simply stared at Finn in disbelief. He found himself at an
utter loss on how to stir the man from his mood. “Lutheron, Madren,
Rivasa, Avanti, non-alcoholic beverages.” Seth chanted the words
and watched Finn closely.

Finn gave a weak snort of amusement and
raised an eyebrow at Seth. “Non-alcoholic beverages?” he asked.

Seth shrugged one shoulder. “I ran out of
people you hate so I tossed in a random thing you hate.” He
explained with a sigh. “I’m trying here, Finn. What’s it going to
take?”

“Legacy, maybe. That might give purpose. I
still have my son at least.” Finn muttered then looked at Seth
hopefully. “Have you spoken with Jala? Did you make amends?”

Seth stared at him for a long moment
wondering how far Finn had let his attention go in his depression.
He should have known the answer to that. “Finn, you know I haven’t.
You should know I haven’t left the Darklands at all. When you
returned from Merro Fiona was frantic over your mood. She pleaded
with me to stay close. The crazy bitch seems to believe I have some
sort of mystical power over you.” Seth snorted with disgust and
waved a hand lazily toward Finn. “As we can both see I obviously do
not.”

“I should have known that.” Finn mumbled and
for a moment the grief was gone from his eyes replaced by concern.
His gaze moved to the massive double doors and Seth knew he was
contemplating the creatures that dwelled beyond them.

“They will be gathering power. You are
showing them weakness and they will be preparing to go for your
throat.” Seth said quietly.

Finn turned back to him and nodded slowly. “I
wish them luck of it.” He spoke the words softly but they hit Seth
like a blow to the face.

“If they kill you the sunlit world is
damned.” Seth promised him coldly. He rose from his chair and paced
back from the table as his irritation crested to anger. “Your life
is what you make of it Finn Sovaesh. This dismal hole you live in
is your predecessor’s creation. Take it and make it your own.
Change it to suit you, rebuild the Darklands to fit your needs.
Don’t just give up, because I promise you if you fall I will seize
your power and I will destroy them all.”

“Why?” Finn asked and Seth simply stared at
him in response. He wasn’t sure if Finn was asking why he should
rebuild or why he would destroy them all, but the man didn’t look
inclined to elaborate.

“Let’s take the most noble of them for
starters. Elijah Arovan. He was a warlord beyond the barrier and he
has more blood on his hands than I do. He destroyed entire worlds
in his conquests without a glimmer of regret. Yet here he acts as
if he is some sort of Paladin or righteous hero. He is a hypocrite
of the highest extreme. Then there is Jin Han’shy. He was a member
of the Dark Brotherhood. He has made most forget that of course and
now pretends to be some pacifist, but I know his true nature. He is
a murderer and a rapist with a penchant for cruelty that makes most
of the demons you control seem like misbehaving children. They are
all like that. Each and every one of them has a dark past that they
pretend doesn’t exist and yet they have the audacity to call me
monster?” Seth’s voice rose as his anger grew and he glowered
upwards as if he could somehow see those he spoke of.

“Isn’t it possible that they have changed?”
Finn asked calmly.

Seth turned to look back at him in disbelief.
“No.” he answered coldly. He didn’t even like the suggestion that
they might have redeemed themselves. Finn didn’t know them as well
as he did. He was too young to understand that men simply didn’t
change their natures.

“Perhaps they served their penance in the
sunlit world. Maybe they recognized why they were locked in the
prison and sought redemption.” Finn pressed.

“No.” Seth repeated in a louder voice and
paced further from the table. He couldn’t explain why the words
angered him so much, but just the suggestion made him want to kill
something. Slowly he turned back to face Finn and let all of the
anger bleed from his face. He knew how to rouse Finn. The answer
had finally shown itself and he knew without a shadow of doubt that
it would work. “You aren’t giving up your own power with this
folly. You are damning your son. If you fail here he dies, either
by the hands of his enemies or alone when I have leveled everything
else. At your insistence I walk a brighter path, but without your
nagging I will continue down the same dark trail I have always
traveled. I wouldn’t be alone either. Myth would see the
opportunity and seek me out. Between the two of us we could end it
all.”

“What about Zoelyn? Would you kill her too?”
Finn asked coldly.

Seth smiled bitterly at Finn and shook his
head slowly. He could see the depression fading from Finn
completely. It was working. He just had to press a bit harder. “I
wouldn’t have to. She is Undrae, Finn. There is so much about her
kind that you don’t understand. With a few gentle nudges I wouldn’t
have to destroy her. She would be at my side helping me. I could
turn her so easily. You’ve seen what she thinks of the outside
world. She is already so close to hating them.”

“And you don’t think that would be destroying
her?” Finn snarled as he rose from his seat.

Seth folded his arms across his chest and
watched in calm satisfaction as the Lord of Death stalked toward
him with fury written clearly on his features. “No, I don’t think
it would be destroying her. I think it would be liberating her and
removing the blinders from her. There is nothing worth saving in
the world above, Finn. It is all a cheap facsimile. A make-believe
world they invented to keep us from seeking our true home beyond
the barrier.”

“For some of us this is the only world we
have ever known and there is a hell of a lot up there that is worth
fighting for. You don’t see the beauty because you are too bitter
to look for it. You are the one with blinders on.” Finn growled.
His bronzed face was contorted in frustration. He seemed unsure if
he wanted to throttle Seth or punch him.

“Then by all means Milord, remove the
blinders and show me what is worth saving.” Seth said quietly.

“I think I hate you. I know I’ve been baited,
but I think there was a bit of truth in what you said. I don’t
think you engineered that all just to rouse me.” Finn grumbled as
he folded his arms over his chest in a mirror of Seth’s own
stance.

Seth smiled at him and shook his head slowly.
“It was all truth and none of it was engineered. You are right I am
blinded by bitterness, and I no longer have any desire to see the
truth.”

“So by sending you after Zoelyn I have damned
her.” Finn rubbed his face and shook his head slowly as he turned
away from Seth.

“That all depends on Zoelyn. She is Delvay.
She might break me before I can enlighten her.” Seth corrected with
an amused smile.

“And I will assist her in any way I can.”
Finn promised. His gaze was roving over the throne room as he
spoke. “You’re right. Part of my difficulty is this dismal place.
It is impossible to keep focus when surrounded by shadows and
gloom.” He said quietly and glanced back at Seth. Finn’s anger had
faded once more, but there was no sign of the depression that had
been haunting him. “Congratulations. You succeeded where Fiona
failed miserably. You have managed to draw me back.”

Seth smiled grimly and bowed his head
slightly to Finn. “What are friends for?” He turned for the doors
before Finn could respond. Finn was back, but there was still a lot
to do before everything was safe once more. He hadn’t realized the
Lord of Death had been so oblivious to his domain, and he knew the
demons would have taken advantage of it. There would be a lot of
blood to spill before the Darklands were secure again, and it was
best to see to it himself and allow Finn to focus on less
depressing things.

Fiona was milling just outside the doors as
he emerged and her eyes flew to him expectantly as if he were
required to report to her.

“Is he well?” she demanded when he tried to
walk past her.

Seth paused and turned to her. He despised
the woman, but knew she was needed for now. “Am I reporting to you
or War?” he asked coldly. Fiona might pretend she served Death, but
he knew better. He was certain Finn realized it too.

“Just answer the question.” Fiona snapped in
irritation and glanced back toward the double doors that led to
Finn’s throne. It was obvious that Finn had banished her from his
sight or the woman would have already been inside and directing her
questions to Finn.

“He is angry which is better than depressed,
and I am busy so skulk in the shadows a while longer and maybe he
will summon you.” Seth replied coldly. The feathers of his cloak
fluttered as he turned quickly and he ignored her as she called
after him.
There will be a time when Finn’s patience with her
wears as thin as mine has and he will give her to me just as he did
Yasny
. Seth promised himself silently. The thought brought a
smile to his face as he stepped from the warmth of the palace into
the cold air of the Darklands.

His hands dropped reflexively to his belt as
he surveyed the city and his fingers wrapped lightly around his
dagger hilts. There were several that he would have to check on
tonight. He knew the troublemakers amongst the demons, and he knew
the ones he would have to kill. The rest would require reminders of
who held the power, but no more than that. A bit of pain and they
would be cowed once more. He was the top of the food chain and by
morning they would all remember that.

As long as he supported Finn the Lord of
Death’s reign was secure. That thought gave him pause, but he
didn’t allow himself to focus on it. Finn was the first man he had
ever willingly given his loyalty to. In the past his loyalty had
always been forced and he had spent all of his time plotting
escape, and now his energy was turned toward preserving his master.
It was unsettling if he dwelled on it, so he pushed it aside. For
now he was loyal and it was as simple as that.

* * *

His steps slowed as he neared the palace. He
had only been gone for a few hours and yet the entire landscape of
his home had changed. The forbidding black stone walls had become
soft grey stone work with wide sweeping windows. Dark vines twisted
over the entry gate and rose along the stone wall of the building
itself. What had been a stronghold now resembled a noble’s country
manor.

Seth’s eyes rose slowly to the upper stories
where his tower had once been. There was still a spire there, but
it was graceful rather than foreboding. Balconies lined the upper
stories as well as wide open windows. He could see curtains of
gauze flowing through some. His mouth went dry at the sight. There
was no way to defend this building. Invaders could swarm the palace
and find entry at a hundred different points.

“He has gone mad.” Fiona declared loudly from
the wide double doors.

Seth gazed at her in dismay. He hadn’t even
heard the doors open. The doors of the old palace had been made of
two foot of oak and iron and they had groaned as they creaked open.
He watched in silence as Fiona stepped lightly down the curving
stairs toward him. Her mouth was set in a grim line and her gold
eyes were flashing with fury.

“It’s not just this he plans to change. He
intends to shift the entire Darklands.” She informed him acidly. He
could see the tension in her muscles as she drew closer. Had Fiona
Veirasha still lived her face would have been red with anger. She
waved a hand back at the palace and a look of disgust formed on her
features. “Does this look like the Palace of Death to you? How can
he possible believe the condemned souls will respond to this? It
looks like they are taking a bloody vacation in the country rather
than being judged for their sins.” The words poured out of her in a
flood as she stared at him in accusation.

Silently Seth composed himself and studied
the building once more. With a slow breath he folded his hands
behind his back and gazed down at Fiona. She was only a few inches
shorter than him, but what she lacked in height she made up for in
temperament and skill. She was one of the more powerful creatures
in the Darklands, but it wasn’t her strength or anger that was
unsettling him, it was the fact that he agreed with her. Their
opinions were usually so different that he could barely stand to be
in the same room as her, and yet, she was right. Finn had chosen
very unwisely, and it was all because of his suggestion to change
his home to suit him.