by Tobias Wade
Jamie and Walter looked at one another, then back at Noah. They waited several seconds, but he didn’t say anything more.
“Noah?” Jamie asked, tentatively. “You understood Ca’akan when he was warning us. You never told us you could speak demon. What did it say?”
But Noah shook his head, unsure himself. “I couldn’t speak demon. I still can’t, I only understood Ca’akan while I was in the netherworld. I’d already exited by the time that cold thing spoke though, and it didn’t make any sense to me either. Probably just an idle threat or something though.”
Noah didn’t believe that though, even as he was saying it. He felt that the creature had been trying to say something specific, and that it had been directed at him. The thought alone was enough to make him start shivering again.
Qari Olandesca Illustrations
Visoloth
Professor Salice was not pleased with Noah the next time they met. He wouldn’t allow him to ask questions anymore during his time as his apprentice, and he kept Noah in that small glass summoning room for hours. There were so many more demons that needed summoning than usual, but Salice was never willing to explain what they were being summoned for. The ones who appeared rarely satisfied him, and he always blamed Noah for catching such weak, scrawny demons.
Noah now realized that his mind was floating in the netherworld when he played host for the new demons. Sometimes when he sat in the circle and the demonic images flooded his mind he would hear them chittering and understood isolated words and phrases, but the moment they were summoned away from the nether he was unable to comprehend anything but the vaguest intention. Despite searching his textbook thoroughly for an explanation, he couldn’t find any mention of anyone understanding demons at all, and Salice refused to comment on his own ability.
Professor Humstrum’s class became considerably more enjoyable as it neared the end of the semester as he held true to his promise not to test the students. While necromancy and demonology were filled with tables to memorize and cram sessions for the finals, transhumanism had moved to the bestiary where the students were allowed to directly interact with the spiritual creatures.
The whole class was jealous of Jamie who was the only one allowed to ride the temperamental manticore. She stroked its mane tenderly and attributed their bond to her affinity for cats, although Walter thought it was more likely that she was only tolerated because she fed it and cleaned up the environmental disasters it left in the sane. None of the spiritual creatures consumed corporal bodies, but that didn’t stop it from draining a small bucket of aquamarine stones every night. Professor Humstrum proudly declared that it ate almost an entire month every single day, but the trans-dimensional department gladly paid its salary in case they ever needed it in war.
More than any class or test, what was first in everyone’s mind was the upcoming Christmas break. The Matriarch had announced that the Daymare would be back to bring everyone to the living world so they could spend the holiday with their families. She warned that it wasn’t easy to celebrate Christmas with a family that was still mourning their loss, but most of the students were excited all the same.
Walter decided that he would rather not go back to watch Natasha and her new boyfriend, although he was still looking forward to seeing his parents and his two brothers once more. Jamie remained adamant that there was nothing left for her to return to though, and Noah was glad to have the company as he had no intention to give Professor Salice another chance to follow him anywhere.
“You think you’re being a hero or something?” Jamie asked when Noah told her his intentions to stay.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Noah asked, ripping up a fistful of fresh grass to scatter to the wind. They were sitting together on one of the hillocks overlooking the other students who boarded the Daymare below. It would have been a dark, moonless night but for the whirling will-o-wisps. The Daymare lazily swatted at them with its numerous legs.
“By staying away from Mandy,” Jamie continued. “You think they’re really better off if they never see you again? If your daughter can see spirits, then she’s going to wonder why she can see all of them except you. She’s going think you don’t love her.”
“You’re one to talk,” Noah grunted. “I don’t see you making much effort.”
“I’m not a Chainer,” she countered, leaning back onto her elbows to look up at the sky.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“I mean my family and I had just met,” Jamie said. “We were a couple of random souls who found each other then went our separate ways. If Chainers are so rare, do you really think it’s a coincidence that there could be two or three in one family?”
“I hadn’t really thought about that,” Noah said, shrugging. He wanted to change the subject, but he couldn’t find the words. Talking about his family just left him with a great, empty pit inside.
“Well, I have,” Jamie said matter-of-factly. “I think you’ve been helping each other come back to life through the years. When one of you is dead, you protect the other ones. Then the dead one comes back as a child, and it’s the other one’s turn to protect them.”
“I’m not coming back as my daughter’s son,” Noah said decisively. “That would be too weird.”
“How so? When did your mother die?”
Noah fell back onto the grass as well. The way the dark clouds were layered reminded him of the netherworld, which was never far from his thoughts anymore.
“Before your daughter was born, I bet,” Jamie continued, “about six years before.”
“Six and a half,” Noah said after a moment to do the math. “How’d you know?”
“It takes six years to graduate from The Mortuary,” Jamie said. “Did she die around March?”
Noah sat rigidly upright, looking down at Jamie suspiciously. “March 10th.”
“There you go then,” Jamie said, as though that proved everything.
“There I go what?”
“It took six months to wait for a new semester in August, then six years in school before she graduated. Mandy isn’t just your daughter, she’s your mother too. And what about her son, Lewis?”
“Lewis isn’t a Chainer,” Noah said cautiously, his mind spinning as he double-checked the numbers.
“As far as you know,” Jamie said. “When did your father die?”
“About ten years ago,” Noah said. “A little less.”
“Six years for school, plus… how old is the boy now?”
“I haven’t always been human,” Noah replied, feeling flustered. “Whatever family line you’re imagining isn’t real. If you’re trying to convince me to go visit them, then it’s not going to work. Even if we did share multiple lives together, then that’s even more reason not to put them in danger now.”
“They’re already in danger,” Jamie said gravely. “How long do you think it will really take Salice to figure it out? There will have only been so many people who have died in your area within the last year. He can do the math, same as me, and sooner or later he’s going to narrow it down. If you really want to protect them, you’re going to need to do more than pretend they don’t exist.”
“I’m not going back,” Noah repeated stubbornly. “I can’t do anything for them there.”
“Then do something for them here,” Jamie insisted. “We can tell The Matriarch —”
“That her star teacher who revolutionized demonology is secretly plotting to kill my family? Fat chance she’ll believe me.”
Jamie leapt to her feet and began rapidly brushing the loose grass from her clothes. “If not, then we need to make her believe you. We need to find out what Salice wants more Chainers for so we can have proof, and I know how to get it.”
Noah was on his feet too—Jamie’s excitement was contagious.
“The only question is, how are we going to get Visoloth alone in the nether where you can understand him?”
“That was a stupid thing to do,” Professor
Salice said with a crisp voice like thin ice. “I wish I could say that I was surprised.” He leaned back in his leather chair (which was stitched together from at least a dozen different kinds of skin), and steepled his thin fingers together in contemplation.
This was the first time Noah had been in Salice’s office, and the demonology professor seemed even more menacing in his own element. The will-o-wisp here was locked in a small wire bird cage where it darted back and forth in restless agitation, causing the thick shadows of the room to constantly shift. Noah tried not to look at the cruel array of nameless bladed devices lining his shelves, or listen to the ceaseless whispering which emanated from stacks of hefty books. Visoloth was curled in apparent sleep beneath Salice’s desk, looking almost like a normal dog now that its mouth was closed.
“You’re right, I’m sorry,” Noah said, forcing a tremor into his voice. “I thought visiting my daughter would only be hard on us both, but this will be her first Christmas alone and…” he allowed his voice to trail off, half-surprised to feel how naturally his voice cracked. Was he really doing this for Mandy? Or was he putting her in even greater danger to satisfy his own suspicions?
“The Daymare won’t be coming back,” Salice said, studying Noah’s face intently. “You’re sure the Whispering Room is quiet?”
Noah hoped his face was inscrutable as he replied, “Yeah, it’s been quiet for a while. That’s part of why I’m so worried. There was only a connection last time because Claire was calling for Mrs. Robinson, but Mrs. Robinson didn’t come back with us after we fell through. So I was hoping Visoloth would take me through the nether to let me visit my family that way.”
Professor Salice’s already tight face strained further in a motion Noah had come to recognize as a smile. “Passages through the nether are not pleasant affairs, even for seasoned demonologists. You may have traveled that way in ignorance before, but you must be desperate to attempt it again.”
“Please, sir,” Noah said. “I’ll do anything to spend Christmas with my little girl again. I thought that maybe because I was your apprentice, and you’ve been kind enough to help me before that…”
Salice’s face slackened. The will-o-wisp darted backward once more, casting him into deeper shadow so that only the slits of his red eyes colored the darkness. Had Noah gone too far? Salice wasn’t known for his kindness anywhere in the school, and their tense relationship in the past would only heighten his suspicions. The wisp was back to the front of the cage though, and Salice was smiling once more.
“Today is your lucky day,” Professor Salice replied. “It has always been my intention that you should see your family again, and I’m not disappointed even though it has taken you so long to come to your senses. Visoloth!”
The demon dog opened one eye which focused laser-like on Noah. He had the unnerving feeling that it had only been pretending to be asleep this whole time. A single inquisitive tentacle poked from its mouth to taste the air.
“You know the way, don’t you Visoloth?” Salice asked, stroking the dog’s rough hide with his foot.
Of course, he does, Noah thought. You were tracking me the whole way there, weren’t you?
Visoloth made a wet, slurping sound as the tentacle retracted into its mouth. Salice nodded, finding this satisfactory. “Very good. You will take him through the nether to see his family for Christmas. You will then wait until he’s ready to return, no later than the resumption of the new term, and then you will lead him back again.”
Visoloth cocked its head to the side, listening intently. Then it looked at Noah, letting its mouth hang loose to let its full dozen tentacles slide out and twist through the air. It let out a long, gurgling howl.
“Those are your instructions,” Salice said cooly. “If I need them to be altered, I will tell you as such. Now stand.”
Noah was only too happy to slide his chair back, eager to be away from his professor. He knew that Visoloth could not break its contract and disobey a direct order, but that wouldn’t be a problem. Even if he had to travel all the way back to his hometown, he could still say he was ready to return immediately without interfering with the directive.
Salice was already drawing a circle of light into the air, opening the way into the nether. Noah couldn’t help but notice that the lines Salice conjured were considerably cleaner than George’s had been, and that the circle was large enough that Noah wouldn’t have to crawl this time. The light seemed to be focusing on his professor’s cufflinks—small bones that must have once been part of his long-discarded corpse.
Visoloth sat upright to attention, its eyes still fixed on Noah while the circle was being drawn.
“You’re doing the right thing, you know,” Professor Salice said as the interior of the circle darkened to black. “Actions have reactions which have their own reactions, and even the wisest have trouble understanding where the final piece will fall. Although today it seems that you are only facing your past, you are facing your future as well, setting a course of history whose ramifications will far outweigh these small steps today. I am pleased that my apprentice has begun the path of his own mastery.”
Those words sounded genuine, but they were poison to Noah. Salice was already gloating about his perceived victory. Even now he might have been imagining Visoloth attacking Mandy and ripping her son from her arms. Noah swallowed hard, refusing to allow himself to react to the image. “Thank you, sir,” he replied stiffly. “May I go now?”
Salice waved his hand dismissively and made his way back around his desk to sit down. He looked strangely small and tired as he slumped over the wood. Visoloth paced around the floating circle twice before bounding inside. Noah paused only a moment to consider the weary figure before stepping into the circle to return to the netherworld.
The cool welcome of the nether slid around his body in an encompassing embrace. The dull, chittering echos filtered through his consciousness once more, and as the circle closed behind him he became suspended in the vast nothingness that felt like home.
Visoloth made a gurgling sound which Noah understood to mean “Follow me”.
“Not yet,” Noah replied. “I didn’t come here because of a deal with Salice. I came to make a deal with you, Visoloth.”
The dog paused and sat down, despite there being nothing definite to sit on. It twisted its head from side to side. “I already have a contract,” Visoloth replied. “Come.”
“I’m not talking about a contract. I need to know something about your master.”
Visoloth stood and began to pace a circle around Noah, its mouthful of tentacles stopping just short of brushing against him. Noah remained still and fought against his instincts to draw away. It was impossible to read the demon’s monstrous face. Was it curious that he could understand it? Would it attack him for his impudence? Was Salice listening through its ears somehow even now?
“I do not make deals with students,” Visoloth said slowly.
“I wasn’t always a student,” Noah replied with more confidence than he felt. “I can understand you, can’t I?”
Visoloth was behind Noah now, but he could perceive it as clearly as if it stood in front of him. He felt one of the tentacles slide along the back of his knee and then slither down his leg, leaving his skin tingling as though charged by electricity.
“Does Salice know that you once lived as a demon?” Visoloth asked. “I’m sure he would be interested to know.”
Was it a threat? There didn’t seem to be any malice in Visoloth’s tone. While a human voice might disguise itself with many subtleties, the speech of a demon felt more like a bond between the minds. Noah could only hope that Visoloth felt the same connection and allowed itself to trust him.
“Not unless you tell him,” Noah said. “One secret deserves another though, don’t you think?”
“What do you want to know?” Visoloth asked.
“He needs hosts to summon something,” Noah guessed. “Regular students don’t have heavy enough souls though. He
needs Chainers, more than one of them. He needs me and my daughter.”
“That wasn’t a question,” Visoloth replied languidly. It began to groom itself with its tentacles.
“That wasn’t a denial,” Noah shot back. “What does he want to use us for?”
“It wasn’t a denial,” Visoloth consented. “You mentioned a deal. I’m still listening.”
“I can help you become human too,” Noah said. “I’ve done it before; I know how it’s done.”
There was a long silence between them where only the distant echoes of the nether floated past. Visoloth had stopped grooming itself and was staring at Noah once more.
“You’re lying,” Visoloth replied.
“I’m not,” Noah insisted. “It might still take some time before I’ve figured it all out, but I used to know, and I’m remembering more all the time. If anyone can do it, it’s me.”
“Why would I want to bother with being human?” Visoloth asked, turning a lazy backflip through the nether as though to prove how content he was. Noah understood its voice as implicitly as he did his own thoughts though, and he could feel the strain behind the calm it sought to portray.
“Because even when you’re set free, you’ll never be treated like the other spirits,” Noah said. “People don’t trust demons. Even if you go back to the nether, there will always be a bigger fish in the pond. You’ll always be living scared of whatever else is out there. But once you’re human, you can come back as anything. You can be free.”
Visoloth didn’t reply. Its face was inscrutable, seeming to have already figured out how well Noah could read its speech. The longer the silence stretched on, the more aware Noah was of the magnitude of the gamble he was taking.
If the demon decided not to take his deal, then it could immediately report to Salice and tell him everything it had learned. Salice would know that his game was up, and he’d have to resort to force to learn where Mandy and Lewis were. Noah’s mind went unbidden to the many bladed instruments lining Salice’s shelves and he tried not to imagine what creative and deranged uses they might have.
