by Jeff Inlo
"And Ansas? Was he predictable, too?" Ryson dared to ask, his curiosity again pressing him forward with questions he could not avoid.
"The sorcerer has wanted to enter my domain all along. Each of his steps was in that direction."
The delver found even greater assurance in that acknowledgment. Every element was pointing to the same conclusion. The unmistakable pattern taking shape before him gave him the strength to actually challenge the daokiln.
"You're right," Ryson shot back. "We already figured that out ourselves. He's kept to his own ambitions from the beginning. I'm just amazed that you let us come here. If you knew what we were doing, I thought you would have tried harder to stop us."
"Why would I want to stop you? I want you here, but for different reasons than the sorcerer. I need you alive, but the sorcerer wishes to kill you."
Ryson revealed his own understanding without hesitation.
"I expected as much. I didn't believe he needed me just to get to your den. I think he could have come here by himself. It's what he would have done if we decided to leave him here."
The delver's assertion and apparent confidence stirred obvious doubt in the daokiln. The beast believed there was a contradiction in the delver's words, and he always strove to raise mistrust and anxiety.
"You expected he wanted to kill you, but you came anyway... alone?"
"You make it sound like it was a mistake. It wasn't. He tried to kill me once before, the first time we met. It didn't work then, and it won't work here."
"You are certain?"
The question was as simple as it was asked, and the delver recognized it was meant to create his own doubts. Ryson, however, had been blessed with knowledge that erased the greatest of uncertainties. In witnessing the existence of his own spirit, he knew, beyond doubt, that there was more to him than his mortal body. He decided to confront the daokiln with the newfound conviction such insight generated.
"Actually, yes, I am."
"And what makes you so sure of this?" the daokiln questioned with a diabolical grin, as if he was setting a trap for the delver.
"Because of what I've already seen here. I see it even in you... right now. The past has a big influence on things here, doesn't it?"
Reiculf would not answer.
"I think it does," Ryson continued. "Ansas' past with me is one of failure. In order to kill me, he would have to overcome that failure, but he won't be able to do that... not here."
"Really? Your concept intrigues me. Maybe we should test your theory right now?"
"Test it? I didn't come here to test Ansas. You know that."
Reiculf ignored the delver's remark. The colossal beast turned and scowled at the sorcerer, and then offered a surprising suggestion.
"Why don't you kill the delver now?" the daokiln asked with a malicious grin. "You've managed to obtain everything else you've wanted. You have removed my slaves and now you've entered the center of my existence. Baannat can't reach you here. The last thing for you to do is eliminate the delver. We all seem to agree that's why you brought him here. Complete your last task, and claim total victory."
Ryson tried to keep his attention on the daokiln, but his curiosity got the better of him, and he couldn't help but glance toward the sorcerer.
Ansas appeared deep in thought as if he was playing through a dozen scenarios in his mind. Initially, he did not act against either Reiculf or Ryson. He remained silent and unmoving, waiting for someone else to make the first move.
"You hesitate?" Reiculf questioned.
"I act on my own will, not yours," Ansas finally stated in the face of the daokiln.
"And yet you have done for me exactly what I wanted."
The insinuation infuriated the sorcerer.
"I am not your slave. I have done what I wanted."
"What you wanted? The delver is within my reach. That is what I wanted. As for your desires, you wish to end his life. He doesn't believe you can, and I have already stated I wanted the delver brought here... alive. If you are in control, then kill the delver."
Ryson could no longer hold back his curiosity, but he directed his burning question toward the sorcerer.
"Why do you want to kill me?"
Ansas found no disgrace in explaining himself. He seemed to enjoy revealing the purpose behind his actions.
"Because I do not like to lose. You beat me once. Not by your own talent, but because I overextended my reach. In looking for the purest of ebony energy, I once filled my core with the magic from Baannat's realm. It was empty magic and unable to harm you. Because of that, I failed to destroy you and ended up a prisoner to Baannat. When he released me to battle the daokiln, I had my own plans. I wanted to prove that I was better than you."
"You did this for revenge?"
"Do not be naive. I did it because I wished to erase a mistake. You only defeated me in the past because I made an error in judgment. It had nothing to do with your ability."
"That may be, but then you've just made another error."
"I am aware of your quick instincts, but fast talk will not help you here."
"It's not fast talk. It's the truth. That's why I came here with you. I meant what I said before. You can't kill me here, and now you've just confirmed that."
"Whether I kill you or not is up to me," Ansas said defiantly, as if he was in complete control. "It has nothing to do with where you or I stand."
"Then why would the daokiln give you this chance? He said he wants me alive, but then he tells you to kill me. You think that makes sense?"
"I do not listen to him. He is the heart of deception."
"I won't argue that, but I can see what's going on here, even if you can't. You came here because you're consumed by your mistakes, even though you won't admit them. You're letting the past define you. This place is more than just a reflection of the past, it feeds on it, it grows because of it. It won't let you undo the mistakes you've already made."
Ansas' expression grew stern. He sighed as he looked to the delver with annoyance.
"I will no longer argue with you. It is not worth my time. I have managed to defeat the ruler of Demonspawn. I have reestablished my superiority. You are an insignificant insect, and it is time to swat you away."
A ring of pure ebony magic rolled about the sorcerer's wrists. Ansas saw no need for bravado. He created a simple spell of pure alteration, one that would simply reverse the delver's existence. He flung it at Ryson with near disregard and absolute certainty in the results. It did not work as he planned.
Ryson made no move to avoid the spell. Before it even left the sorcerer's wrists, he looked deep within the magic, used the traits of Demonspawn to see the outcome before it occurred. He knew he couldn't see the future of undetermined events, but certain actions were tied to the past. For those, the outcome was already established. His delver eyes saw the echoes of history in Ansas' spell, and he knew it could not harm him.
Ansas, however, was flustered and enraged by the failure of his spell. The ebony ring tightened around Ryson's neck, but then it simply disappeared. The sorcerer stared at the delver, first in disbelief and then in frustration.
"This is impossible! You're not immune to magic, and my energy is not tainted in any way. My ebony magic is pure!"
"Your magic isn't the problem," the delver explained. "It's your intentions. You're trying to erase a mistake. You can't do that, not here. This is a place where errors and mistakes rule."
Ansas could not accept such a prospect, especially when it was professed by a simple delver.
"How can someone such as you possibly know this? You have no concept of magic!"
"I know how to look for answers. That's what I do, that's what I've always done. Once I get on a trail, I can follow it for every answer I need, unless I'm distracted, but there's nothing here to distract me from the past. This place is the past."
"You're talking absurdities."
"Am I? You're smart enough to figure things out. Why else would
your magic fail?"
"The daokiln is protecting you! He wants you alive."
"I have done nothing to save the delver," Reiculf admitted with a sly smile. "I didn't have to. Believe it or not, the delver is actually correct. Not that it will help either of you."
"Then why would you let me come here?" Ansas demanded.
"Because I wanted the delver here. I also wanted to show you how you have ultimately failed. You never had a chance to win against me. You managed to surprise me here and there, take away pawns, but you will not take away what I really want. In fact, you will help me attain my ultimate goal. The delver is now my prisoner, and I will use him to gain control of the wizard from Connel before the guardian spirit can intervene."
It was Ryson who disagreed.
"I don't think so."
"Be careful, delver," the daokiln snarled. "Your understanding of this place is surprisingly insightful, but you clearly do not understand me."
"Careful? Why? I thought you said I was right about this place."
"You are, but while you may be protected against Ansas, the same does not apply to me. I have no past with you. Or do you disagree? Do you actually believe I am also unable to kill you?"
"No, you can kill me, but you won't."
The daokiln chuckled, but then corrected the delver.
"Not right away, of course, but once I have what I want, you will no longer be useful to me."
"You won't even kill me if you get control of Enin. Not here, not like this."
"You think me incapable of the deed?"
Ryson shook his head. He understood the fiend was capable of many horrible acts.
"I think there are very few things you won't do, but this has more to do with me, why I came here. Like I said before, I think the past has a very strong influence over this place. I came here for a specific reason. I didn't come here to gain glory, or wealth, or power." Ryson gave a quick glance toward Ansas. "I didn't even come here just to beat you. I came here for another reason. I came to keep my wife safe."
"And how does that stop me? Do you think your intentions matter?"
"Not as much as I would hope, but that's not the point. You thrive on decisions already made, actions already taken. Whether or not I succeed in protecting my wife hasn't yet been determined. If you kill me, that doesn't mean I failed in that regard. It means you stopped me from trying. For you, and especially this place, there's a big difference."
"If you are dead, then you can no longer protect your mate. How is that not failing?"
"Because you intervened. You determined the outcome. It would be much better for you if I make some attempt to stop you. Perhaps I might try to use my sword against you. Maybe I think its enchantment will burn your essence. Or maybe I hope to use my speed against you and try to beat you into submission. If you let me try and then I fail, then the course is more than just plotted, it becomes a path taken, and that can't be erased here."
The daokiln appeared intrigued by the delver's ideas, almost as if he hoped the delver would actually try one or all of the pointless attacks against him. He did not, however, appreciate the disregard for his own defenses.
"So you think I will just let you attack me? How absurd."
"No, I just said I don't think you will kill me outright, not here, not under these conditions. If I'm wrong, why am I still talking?"
"Maybe I'm toying with you."
"Or maybe I'm right."
The daokiln actually laughed, but then offered his own view of the situation.
"Then let us proceed to more important matters and we can determine who will ultimately prevail. I know why you're here, delver... to protect your wife. I offer a different proposal. Kill the sorcerer now and you will have no..."
Ryson wouldn't allow the daokiln to continue.
"No! Just stop right there. I'm not going to listen to that. This isn't about my past with him. It's about my future and my fight with you. I don't want to hear about what he's done, or how I can fix things... change them if I just end his life. I've already faced that decision. It's all part of my past, you should know that. And I don't believe in killing."
"But this is not some meaningless act. The sorcerer might not have told you this, but he is now important to me. I used his magic to reach out to the others. It was his past decisions that paved the way. His musings opened paths for me. If you kill him, you close those paths. He knows this. That's why he came here. I will not obliterate him because I want those paths to remain open. If you end his life, they close forever."
"So you're trying to tell me if I kill him it would be justified?"
"I'm telling you that you have the opportunity to rectify a mistake."
Ryson shook his head once more.
"That's really what you're about, isn't it?" the delver asked, determined not to make a fatal error. "And that's why you're making the offer now. That's what you do. You throw the past in people's faces, use it to destroy them."
"Will you deny what you are?"
"No, but that's not all I am. I learned that today... in your realm. I've seen the hope that's inside each and every one of us. You can only hurt me if my past is greater than my future. And that's just not possible, I know that now... beyond any doubt. What I've done, what I was, where I've been; all of it can't measure up to what's ultimately ahead of me. And there's nothing you can do that can take that away from me. Nothing. How are you going to destroy that?"
"I don't have to destroy you. You said so yourself. All I have to do is let you fail and you will do all the work for me."
"That's the big question. Will I fail? I don't understand all there is about this place, but I know enough. You're all about the past, mostly past misjudgments and mistakes. You might take hold of all of the things I feel guilty about, but you just turn them against me. That's what you do. But I have a choice. I can turn my past over to something else, something bigger than you, something more powerful, something that was able to confine you in the past... and can do it again. I can turn over all my guilt to something that won't use it against me, a power so great it can wipe it all clean. I just have to accept that it's there, and that was the hard part for me, because I couldn't touch it, smell it, or hear it. I couldn't even see it, until I came here."
"What you think you've seen won't help you against me! You have no idea what I am."
"Maybe not, but I believe what happens here has a greater influence as the present becomes the past. That means if I stop you now, my actions against you will only get stronger as time goes by."
"But that is the problem for you. How can you stop me?"
Ryson did not answer. Instead, he turned to Ansas and issued a surprising demand.
"You came here to win, to beat the daokiln. You can still do that."
"I have no desire to help you," the sorcerer growled.
"What about the desire not to lose?" Ryson questioned. "Reiculf wants to take away your victories, but he can't. He can't change the past, that would alter who he is. And now, you can build on what you've already done. You have the chance to defeat him in his own sanctuary. Don't you see? Despite what he said, you have beaten him. We can use that against him... your past and my future."
"And how do we manage that?" Ansas questioned, suddenly interested in the concept of overcoming the daokiln at the very heart of Demonspawn.
"You know how to take magic from yourself and put it in others. That means you can take a piece of my energy. That's exactly what I want you to do. Take a slice of my magic."
"I don't want your magic," the sorcerer scoffed. "It is not pure."
"Yes, it is. I've never cast a spell. It's also colorless, just like his," the delver explained as he nodded to the daokiln. "That means it's more than just me. It's more than what I was or anything I've done. It has no history, none at all, and that's what it's going to take to defeat him."
"What can I do with it? My core is not colorless."
"You're not going to keep it."
Ansa
s believed he understood, but he was not as certain as Ryson regarding the effects of the delver's unspoken plan. The prospect, however, was beyond his ability to refuse and offered an opportunity he could not dismiss. Magic had been his fundamental focus. He believed it was the key to reaching beyond any border, exceeding any limitation. He had studied the energy, developed concepts few could understand and even less could appreciate.
For whatever reason, Ryson was offering a portion of the magic within him, an energy that was part of the delver since birth. Ansas had only theories about such energy, but suddenly he had a chance to experiment with it on his own. He knew what Ryson wanted him to do, and he wished to see for himself what would happen.
The sorcerer acted without further questions and his sudden movement surprised the daokiln.
With Ryson paving the way with complete compliance, the sorcerer reached into the delver's essence with his own magical aspirations. Ansas took a small slice of the colorless energy and pulled it free.
When he took hold of Ryson's pure magic, Ansas moved as fast as any delver, far faster than even Reiculf could react. The sorcerer became a blur of motion and transferred the energy directly into the daokiln's core.
The demon master fell silent, unable to accept what had just happened. He looked upon both the sorcerer and the delver with absolute contempt. In the heart of his own realm, he had been violated. Worse for the fiend, he could not yet fully comprehend the consequences he faced, for the act remained too fresh in the present, and it was an act he had never considered.
Ansas used the connection between his magical core and that of the daokiln to analyze the outcome. He was most amazed. He actually turned to the delver for an explanation.
"Why did you make that request? And how did you know it would have the effect it is having?"
"Because I want it to. That's how magic works, isn't it? You cast a spell and put purpose into the magic, you shape it to do what you want."
"But spells can be overcome."
"This isn't a spell. It's my magic placed inside of him, and it's now my history... and his. That's the obstacle he can't overcome."
