The Demon's Game (38 page)

Unfortunately, while they were powerful in strength
and magic, goblins were slow. A white energy burst exploded from the weapon,
hit the guard, and threw Krehm across the room. Kseve pushed me back into the
doorway and tried to block me.

When Adre turned the weapon on Kseve, I gripped my
guard’s arm and pulled him to the ground. I was fast enough to get Kseve out of
the way, but not myself. My brother pulled the trigger, the energy shot out…
and imploded. The burst vanished in thin air, causing everyone to freeze in
shock.

“I didn’t mean to interrupt anything,” a stranger
said, appearing right between us. “I just thought it would be rude for you to
die before I could offer you the chance to live.” He was tall, but not as tall
as Kseve. His eyes were light brown and his hair was reddish brown. The smirk
on his face didn’t bode well for us.

“Who are you?” Adre asked, aiming the weapon at him.

The stranger scoffed and waved his hand dismissively.
The weapon actually disintegrated into ash in my brother’s hand. “You should
ask that
before
you threaten me, mortal. I am Vretial, the most powerful
god you will ever meet, and you just happen to be on my bad list.” He turned to
me. “Void, I am here to offer you something you have wished for your entire
life.”

Kseve tried to pull me away, but I patted his arm
calmly. “Please explain.”

“I can break the curse that made you a void, which
will give you your powers back. Now, unfortunately, it will mean the blood you
pumped into this mortal’s system will lose its power. He will also be able to
use magic again.”

“Do it!” my brother demanded.

“How can you end the curse?”

“I can break the deal your brother made with the
demon.”

“What deal? I thought I was born a void because Adre
killed my father.”

“You were lied to. This is all because of your
brother’s greed and jealousy. Tell him, spy Noquodi.”

It took me a moment to realize he was no longer
talking to me. Kseve and I both turned to see Nano standing in the doorway. My
uncle’s eyes were on Vivian as he nodded. “I didn’t take you in because I felt
charitable towards your mother. I was actually very curious about the
circumstances of your condition. However, it wasn’t until Adre was driven off
that I learned what really happened.”

“You know why I am a void?”

“Your father left Adre’s mother because she couldn’t
give her a more powerful son. Knowing the problem was actually on his end, he
took many women, expecting to eventually get a child. Since your mother was the
first to become pregnant, he married her. Adre was jealous because Atos doted
on his unborn child. He began slipping Atos small doses of poison until the
king became confused and suspicious. Finally, he got it in the king’s mind that
you would use your powers to take the throne.

“Adre told Atos of an old ritual to call demons and
control them. Atos summoned an Ancient and made a deal for your power.
Unfortunately, the demon demanded a life first in return, because he could feed
off of that energy. Atos wasn’t willing to kill himself, so he agreed to kill
Adre.

“Overhearing that his plan had backfired, Adre killed
Atos, and then demanded the same deal the demon had offered your father. The
Ancient agreed, but warned Adre that you could break the curse for as long as
you lived. Adre got your power, which was minuscule at best, and you became a
void.”

“I want to stay a void.”

“Having magic means you can protect yourself,” my
uncle insisted.

Kseve put his arm around my shoulder. “Protecting him
is my job.”

“Why wouldn’t you want your power?” the stranger
asked.

“Power corrupts. It has happened to so many of my
people. I am king, so I have power, but nobody wants my power and I don’t want
theirs. I am a void. If I lose that, I will just be a wizard.”

“So you don’t want your magic back. In that case, I
will just kill this mortal and be done with it. Less work for me; I like it.”

“No! Please don’t kill him. He is my brother.
Imprisoning him is enough.”

Furious, Adre took advantage of Dytha’s distraction
and snatched the sword from her. He lunged at me, but the god just sighed and
waved his hand again. Adre vanished, leaving behind the sword that clattered to
the ground.

Vretial sighed. “Too stupid to live comes to mind.”

We were all silent for a moment. “Did he suffer?”

“Why would he have suffered?” the god asked.

“You killed him. How could that not have hurt?”

He gave me an odd frown. “I thought you didn’t want
me to kill him, so I didn’t. I guess if you have changed your mind---”

“No, I wanted him to live… but what did you do?”

“I sent him to Canjii, which is the most failsafe
imprisonment system in all worlds. Sorry if that wasn’t dramatic enough for
you. I know Dylan loves a show, but most of the grunt work is boring.”

“Why did you come here? Why did you save me?”

“Family obligations,” he said simply. Then he
vanished without another word.

I turned back to the doorway to find Nano gone again.
Dytha checked on Krehm as one of the other goblins tended to Vivian. Other than
shocked and horrified, she seemed okay, but she wouldn’t release her scalpel.

“High King…” Dytha said, solemnly. Everyone turned to
her. “Krehm is dead.”

*          *          *

With Adre out of the way, my rebellion won easily. We
had casualties, but once word spread that Adre was dead, most of the slavers
surrendered. The only thing left to clear up was getting these people settled
in on the surface so that the goblins and trolls could reclaim their land.

Vivian went ahead of Kseve and I. She was miserable,
as if we had lost, and I knew it was because of Nano. I was still shaken from
learning that Adre was the cause of my curse… and that my father was willing to
kill one son to gain the power of the other.

We were at the mouth of the cave when I heard a raspy
laugh. I turned, forcing Kseve to pause as well. The rest of our troupe went
around us until we were alone. Kseve didn’t ask me for information; he just put
his hand on my shoulder in support.

“Come out, father. I know you’re here.”

Shadows merged and darkened, then grew upright into
the shape of Atos. He laughed again, causing a chill to run down my spine.

“You think you have seen the end of this.”

“Slavery has been abolished. I am still a void, which
means you cannot hurt me. Whatever you have planned, I will stop you. You need
to let it go and return to the spirit world.”

“You are wrong. I have already won.” With one last
laugh, the shadow disbursed.

Dylan

When Mordon flashed, there was no doubt in my mind
what happened. Instead, I felt overwhelming pain and frustration, for Mordon
needed me and I could do nothing but grind my teeth. “Tiamat!” I yelled, the
sound bursting from me without foreknowledge. My wife had been injured, but
when she immediately appeared, all I could do was stutter out that Mordon was
gone.

“Gone where? What happened?” she asked. Whatever
healing Ron used, he did a good job.

“Ghidorah,” was the best I could get out. I was
shaking. Luckily, Sydney was thinking clearly enough to get the children out of
the room.

Divina vanished only to reappear a second later with
Ghidorah. “What happened?” he asked.

“Mordon accidentally flashed to Skrev and I can’t get
to him because of this,” I held up my wrist to show off the bracelet.

When it was first created by Vretial, it only
prevented someone from drawing in energy, and only one of his servants or
himself could remove it. The second generation was created to hide Mordon and
my power. Therefore, it had to keep me from creating Iadnah energy and him from
creating fire. It could be removed by Ron and Hail because Vretial wanted them
as his world’s Guardians. This one apparently could even overcome the lotus
wand.

Ghidorah’s face turned ashen and I felt my heart drop
into my chest.

“During the Ajaskakara, he has no chance. His dragon
will rise and seek the most basic instincts. Since there are no dragons to mate
with on Skrev, he will try to kill anything that gets in his way. He will kill
until he is killed, and because we have little water, he will likely die
quickly.”

“Take me to him!” I demanded.

“I don’t know what the Ajaskakara will do to you,
Dylan. You might kill my entire planet. Those who have no beast are themselves
a beast when the rain turns to blood.”

“I will go and save him,” Divina said, resigned.

“The Ajaskakara was created by Araxi to weed out the
weak. It would affect you as well, if you go there now. Either of you is liable
to destroy the population.”

“I don’t care,” I said. They both stared slack jawed
at me. “But I’m not losing you, too,” I told my wife. “I’ll go. With this on,
perhaps it will keep anything from coming up. In fact, I might be the only one
of us that can survive it.” I wiggled the bracelet.

“You will be defenseless.”

“You have to go,” Ron said, appearing in front of me.

“Were you spying on us?”

“I felt a disturbance in the balance. Dad, if you
don’t save Mordon, I can’t stop the balance. It’s hard enough when you two are
together. If you don’t save him, you’ll die.”

I took off my bag and handed it to Divina. “Send me
in.” She flashed me to Skrev.

*          *          *

I knew three things; it was raining something thick
and warm, it was pitch-black, and something very large was right behind me.
Trying to face my opponent, I turned, only to trip over a root and fall hard on
my back. My breath was knocked from my lungs, but before I could try to inhale,
I got a mouth full of blood. It was raining blood.

I had enough time to spit the iron-rich fluid out of
my mouth before a creature pinned me to the ground with a single furry paw that
spanned the entire width of my chest. I closed my eyes against the foul
downpour and put up my arms to defend myself. Heavy, hot breath was my only
warning before huge, sharp fangs sank into my right arm, effectively snapping
my bone in two places. Heat burned all the way up my shoulder, but I didn’t
scream. I had enough brain power left to decide I would rather be eaten alive
than die by drowning in blood.

As the beast began dragging me over thick roots and
sharp rocks, the pain of his bite spread with each beat of my heart until my
entire body was paralyzed with agony. As if he knew I couldn’t escape, the
beast abruptly dropped me. Blind and in so much pain I couldn’t breathe, I
rolled onto my back. It wasn’t a heavy rain, but the blood was sticky.

Cramps struck my legs and abdomen, painful enough
that I managed to feel them over the fire in my blood, before bones throughout
my body started breaking with sickening cracks. My knees popped painfully. Skin
and muscles stretched as my limbs reformed, tearing my clothes easily. My head
throbbed with the worst migraine I had ever felt. The heat was unbearable, but
the energy that ran through my blood was like lightning.

Even over my anguish, I sensed the beast run.

A sort of haze fell over me as the pain grew more
severe and the change in my body grew stranger. By the time the torment faded,
I felt very bizarre. I felt light and… quick. The blood rain no longer bothered
me; I could breathe just fine. I climbed unsteadily to my feet, but it was on
four legs instead of two. A quick glance down revealed that I was correct.
Instead of arms and hands, I had front legs and paws. I wasn’t small, but I was
shorter than my human form.

The ability to see despite the fact that it was still
dark was not as important as examining my new legs, which were covered in sleek
black fur that was being saturated with blood.
That isn’t good; I want my
fur clean.
Even more frustrating, however, was the shiny object on my right
ankle. I had just enough awareness to recognize the thick metal cuff.

The thoughts in my head were strange so I shook my
head, but it didn’t help. A hunger set in and I scanned my surroundings. I was
in a prime location; high ground with tree cover and plenty of places to hide
and ambush. I prowled around, interested in my new territory and ready to kill
any invaders. Color was useless, but even the darkest areas of the jungle were
clear as day to me. It took time to differentiate between the different types
of movement. For example, rain smacking against leaves didn’t mean food. One
simple lick determined that it wasn’t to drink, either.

I made sure to rub against every tree, both to mark
them with my scent and also to scrape off the scraps of clothes that survived
my transition. I needed to find Mordon, but I wanted to eat. Mordon was
important… but food was a must. I had to hunt. A soft snap a ways ahead of me
made me freeze and my ears perk.

Silent as the night, I crept close to the ground,
prowling forward until I reached a clearing. I knew this was where the sound
had been made, but nothing moved. Suddenly, there was a shift in the wind as
the rain let off and I realized my mistake. It wasn’t so much a thought as an
instinct; I was the one being hunted.

With a burst of speed, I ran for the closest tree and
climbed it, barely escaping curtain death. The ground came alive with insects,
each about an inch long. After a few seconds, they stilled again and
disappeared. I waited patiently as the hours passed.

I detected the varug long before the animal came into
sight. He didn’t have the instincts that I did, so he walked right into the
ambush. The insects sprang, swarmed the predator, and ate him alive within
seconds.

Taking advantage of the distraction, I hit the ground
running. I made it easily because I was clever, quick, and patient.

I need to find Mordon.

Food first.

I found a small mammal and chased it around a little
for fun, then pinned it when I got bored. I ate the little creature whole
before I realized what I did. Part of me was so satisfied for the flawless
hunt, and the rest of me was sick.

I wasn’t an animal, I was a person, and I had to find
my brother. I wasn’t here to eat animals or…

Something new dawned on me. I had a successful hunt
and meal. The obvious next step was to find a mate for the night, which meant
leaving my territory, but that was okay. Surely there was nothing that could
best me in this jungle. I was designed for this.

I spent about an hour traveling before I arrived at a
small pool of water. I wasn’t tired or anything, but it was the first water I
had seen here. I approached it, mindful of larger predators guarding it, and
almost missed the true threat. I almost made a terrible mistake.

The water smelled foul. There was something acidic
about it that made me hiss furiously at the pool. Before I could back away from
the water, however, I caught the image and tilted my head. I was aware enough
to know it was my reflection I saw, but it was strange. I was a large black
cat, very similar to a jaguar. My eyes glowed, but I couldn’t tell the color.

I lost interest within seconds and left the poisoned
water. A mate was far more interesting right now. To my delight, I could smell
more than one female quite close. Instead of chasing after one of them, I found
the nicest tree and curled up on a thick branch. I had to wait a little while,
but soon one of the females found me. She yowled up at me and I examined her
well.  Her sleek black fur was like mine…

But she wasn’t Divina. I was married, and my wife was
far better than…

I was distracted again as a second female arrived.
Suddenly, this was a lot more interesting. They hissed at each other, but
neither was willing to make the first move. I sat upon my perch and grinned at
them the best way a cat could. After I grew bored, I jumped down to examine the
females more closely. I rubbed against the shoulders of both females until one
of them bared herself to me.

The memory assaulted me of Divina spread out on our
bed and it hit me harder than before.
I am not a cat. I am Dylan Yatunus,
and I don’t deserve Divina if I would cheat on her with an animal.
I
shivered as I tried to push the cat instincts to mate off. I had to keep who I
was in my head so I didn’t lose it again.
I have a family at home who needs
me. Mordon needs me.

A new scent threatened to distract me again; there
was a male closing in. If I had to fight him, I wanted to be in my right mind…
but that went out the door when the animal came into view. He was almost
identical to me, except for a long scar down the left side of his face. He
hissed a warning, yet I knew he wasn’t really going to let me go. If I ran, he
would see me as weak. When I charged him, he didn’t budge, so I retreated a few
steps.

The two females backed away. This cat grew up in this
jungle and survived the hardships of it, whereas I had only been a cat for a
few hours. He had vital knowledge in how to use his teeth and claws; however, I
had instincts. I didn’t hiss back and instead stared him straight in the eyes.
There was no telling what I was about to do.

My opponent took a strike at me, trying to get at my
throat, but I was faster. He was going high for my throat; I went low for his
left front leg. I got a nasty cut on my shoulder, which I would survive. He, on
the other hand, retreated with a severe limp. While it wasn’t a mortal wound,
his tangle with me left him weakened during a time when the weak were prey.
Under the red sky, only the strongest, fastest, and cleverest survived. I
turned my back on him and pranced away. He wouldn’t be following me now.

With the females out of sight and out of mind, I
headed on through the thick of the jungle. There would be no more light than
the soft red glow of the sky for many days. Until then, the entire world was a
hunting ground.

I need to find Mordon.
I could almost feel the
cat sigh.

It was like I was both the cat and myself at the same
time, like we were too different beings merged together. It was probably the
weirdest sensation I had ever felt, and the cat that I was felt the same about
me. Whatever part of my mind that was still functioning as a person realized
that this was Ghidorah’s doing. The spell he meant for my mother must have been
strong enough under the Ajaskakara to overpower my own magic.

I stopped hesitantly. There was no movement in the
jungle floor, no frantic heartbeat of a hiding creature.
So why do I sense
danger?
I was patient when I needed to be, thus I sniffed cautiously at the
roots and vines.

The snap was so miniscule that I would have missed it
if I weren’t waiting for it. I backpedaled with everything I had. Pain seared
my chest and shoulder as the trap shot up from the ground, but I didn’t lose my
head. Had I been an instant slower, or not realized there was danger at all,
the metal teeth would have killed me.

A loud battle shook nearby trees. Curious, I skirted
around the trap and found a small clearing, where a dragon battled for his
life. The dragon was Mordon- that much I knew. What color he was, I couldn’t
say, but light reflected oddly off his hide. He was in the middle of a fight
with six varug. The smaller predators may have been no match for the dragon
individually, but they worked together flawlessly and the huge trees gave the
dragon very little room to maneuver. While the dragon was distracted by a varug
trying to tear at his underbelly, another had a clear shot at his long throat.
I leapt on the varug’s back and sank my teeth into the back of his neck.
Quickly dropping to his side, he managed to shake me loose, only to take off
for the woods instead of finishing the fight.

Mordon breathed fire, effectively wounding four of
the remaining varug. The last one backed away, his eyes darting between us. I
was half their size, but we were not worth the trouble. He ran and the rest of
the pack stumbled after him, wounded but not dead yet.

I turned on Mordon and hissed sharply. He roared and
my hiss turned into a yowl. He wasn’t getting the hint. When he opened his
mouth, I darted behind the nearest tree and barely avoided getting singed. That
pissed me off. Mordon opened his wings to fly and I lunged at him, easily
swiping him across his bared chest. He knocked me over with his wing, but I dug
my claws into it before he could pull away.

He then plopped down on top of me so heavily that I
knew there was a cat shaped imprint in the dirt. I growled, for he was getting
my sleek coat dirty, and he suddenly got heavier. I couldn’t submit by rolling
over when I could barely breathe, but I gave my best purr, which was more of a
drunk lawnmower sound. Mordon must have understood, though, because he stood.