by L. L. McNeil
‘If you hadn’t...what?’ Seila stood and approached Tress, anger beginning to flare in the pit of her stomach.
Tress reached a hand into her pocket and brought out a handful of tiny, round diamonds.
‘Sekki’s jewellery!’ Ashante exclaimed. She darted across the room to take the stones from her. ‘Didn’t you say the old Elite used jewellery to give orders to Lesser Demons?’
‘Yes. “Come to me. I’m waiting.” Those were his usual commands,’ Seila said, her voice flat. ‘Tress. You took them after we’d said to leave them alone? Well, it’s no wonder we had half the demons of London on our doorstep! I’d expect that of Tej, but you?’
Tej peered at Seila, his brows knitted, but a lopsided grin on his face.
Tress shook her head but didn’t reply.
‘What’s that gotta do with Gorath though?’ Damon asked. ‘I mean, if he’s an Elite, he ain’t gonna listen to no orders from some other banished demon, is he?’
‘Elites always look to strengthen themselves,’ Fallow said. ‘Like Sekki, Gorath is taking on more and more Lesser Demons. They can follow an Elite if it’s powerful enough. With every new follower, Gorath’s power grows. He probably sensed the gathering and came to investigate. Take them over for himself. The ones who used to follow Sekki haven’t all dispersed. They were just waiting to be taken, to follow another master.’
Damon ran another hand through his hair and sent more ash clouds floating away.
‘He’s stronger,’ Tress said, her voice quiet. ‘Stronger now than when I fought him before.’
‘What!’ Seila gasped. How on earth could that be right. ‘Is that why you froze? Because you couldn’t defeat him?’
‘I don’t know!’ Tress snapped. She looked up at Seila, her skin blotchy from tears.
‘Your axe still ate into him, you know,’ Seila said. ‘Someone had to do something before he killed us all. Maybe next time you’ll be more useful.’
‘Seila. Enough,’ Fallow said. The room grew cold in the Enchantress’s displeasure.
Seila would have ignored her, answered back, but she didn’t want to incur Fallow’s wrath. The Enchantress was strong enough to drive Gorath away. Seila didn’t want to think about what Fallow could do to her, if she ever had a mind to. She wondered why Fallow wasn’t a field fighter, if she commanded so much magic.
Seila folded her arms and scowled at Tress, about the most she trusted herself to get away with. It was about time the Lady was brought down a peg or two, especially after everything she’d said to Damon.
‘Tress risked a lot by coming here to warn us of Gorath. If she hadn’t, I’d still be away and Caramond House would be in ruins,’ Fallow continued, her voice retaining the same icy tone as before.
Seila frowned. She was the one who’d inflicted damage on Gorath, not Tress. Tress had frozen. Left herself open to attack, like a sitting duck. She, Tej, and Ashante had had to try and protect her from the demons. What good was she if she couldn’t do anything with those axes and sharp tongue?
‘Take all the time you need, Lady Tress,’ Fallow said. ‘My enchantments are back in place. Gorath isn’t likely to go anywhere.’
Tress nodded, smiled through tears, then returned her attention to the ashes at the bottom of the fireplace.
Seila narrowed her eyes. Not a hint of gratitude for what she’d done.
If Gorath had left with all of Sekki’s demons, that meant there weren’t going to be any demons left in Fernhampton. And considering her Sieken Blade couldn’t even touch Gorath, she wasn’t sure if there was any point in staying at Caramond House.
She might as well go back to where she was most comfortable: working alone.
Delgo refilled Fallow’s teapot and poured her another mug.
‘Thank you,’ she said, taking a long sip. ‘We did well to survive a surprise attack from Gorath. You should be proud of what you achieved. No lives lost and we thinned their numbers.’
Seila rolled her eyes and stared out the window. If it hadn’t been for her, they’d all have died. She was the only one who’d been able to keep Gorath at bay until Fallow had arrived to turn the tables.
Sierra sat in a nearby tree, peering through the glass. Seila wondered what the owl could see.
Sierra’s head turned, a perfect 180, and Seila sat up as someone approached the window. Claes. She watched him walk past and to the door out of view. It didn’t take long before she heard his heavy footsteps along the corridor, and she looked over when he entered the room.
‘All tidy,’ he said. ‘And here, Ashante. You might find some use for this.’ He fished in his pocket for a moment and drew out a long, sharp tooth.
He flicked it across the room, and the young Enchantress caught it with both hands. She spent several seconds inspecting it, and held it close to her eyes, then up to the sunlight streaming in through the window. ‘A demon tooth? From Gorath?’
‘I think so.’
Seila tried to peer over Ashante’s shoulder to see. It had probably fallen from his jaw when she’d smashed him in the face with the flat side of Tress’s axe. And again, not a hint of gratitude from any of them for what she’d done.
She folded her arms tightly over her chest and stared out of the window again.
None of them could stop her if she wanted to leave. Fallow had always said she was free to come and go as she pleased, and she couldn’t really see the Enchantress trapping her here.
‘Best thing we can do is weaken Gorath by sealing his Mirage,’ Delgo said. ‘Just like with Sekki. We’ll get rid of Gorath the same way.’
‘I want to kill him,’ Tress muttered.
Delgo said, ‘He’ll be easier to kill if we seal it.’
Tress swallowed and looked away.
‘It won’t be a problem if we seal it?’ Fallow questioned, her attention back on Tress.
The assassin shook her head. ‘Do what you want.’
Seila wasn’t sure why it would matter to Tress whether or not they sealed a demon’s Mirage. Did they need the Lady’s permission to do their job? She scowled again, getting more and more annoyed with how everything had panned out.
The morning sun was bright, now. She’d been up since well before dawn hunting demons, then helped Damon with his training, and finally thrown into an enormous battle headed up by the strongest Elite Demon she had ever faced.
Admittedly, it was only the second one she’d ever faced, but it was still far more than she’d ever dealt with before.
And for what?
It wasn’t as if she could slay Gorath with her sword, absorb his power, and perhaps reclaim her soul. No. She’d been invited to stay and fight, to help carry the Kouzlo while Fallow was off recovering, and Delgo did whatever it was that Delgo did. But joining the Kouzlo had opened her eyes to the fact that she wasn’t strong enough to fight bigger demons by herself. And as a Phantom, apparently the most efficient demon hunters to exist, it was shameful. If she wasn’t careful, they’d all be overwhelmed by Gorath.
All she needed to do was find a Mirage, then she’d have a constant stream of demons on supply. She could hunt them at her leisure. Surely it wouldn’t take too long to reclaim her soul?
Then she could finally throw down the sword and reclaim her humanity. She could know exactly who she was, and what life she’d had.
‘What are you smiling about?’
Damon’s voice brought her back to the present. Seila rubbed her eyes, faked a yawn. ‘I’m tired.’
‘Yeah, me too. Been through a lot the past couple of hours, ain’t we?’
‘Before, I was in the dark,’ Ashante said, grabbing Seila’s attention. ‘But with this, I have a fix on the demon I want to find. I should be able to whip up a spell that’ll help us track down his Mirage.’
‘You’ll have to do it quickly. Every hour that passes, more Lesser Demons will join with Gorath, and our chances of defeating him get smaller,’ Delgo said, his voice serious.
‘I know. I’ll do it as fast a
s I can, but my magic isn’t something that can be rushed. Not if you want decent results, anyway,’ Ashante replied.
Delgo clearly wasn’t happy with the answer, but he didn’t object.
Ashante continued, ‘Fallow, viens avec moi. J'ai besoin de ton aide.’
Seila’s skin prickled at the sudden exclusion when Ashante switched into French.
‘Bien sûr. Je te suis.’
The two Enchantresses left the room, Soto at their heels, his tail high and twitching.
Delgo, too, disappeared in a puff of purple smoke, leaving Seila, Damon, Tej, and Tress quiet and sombre. They’d just secured a great victory. They should have been celebrating the close call, retelling their favourite bits of combat, sharing in their celebrations. But Tress was silent, and Damon and Tej were both exhausted.
Seila, on the other hand, just wanted to leave and live her nomadic life again. She didn’t know if that was because she was a Phantom, and that’s what Phantoms were supposed to do, or if she really didn’t fit in with Fallow Caramond’s team.
She was certain if she spoke to Fallow, the Enchantress would tell her that she was a vital member of the team, and her efforts were appreciated.
But Seila didn’t want to hear that.
She wanted to slay demons. Any demons would do, really, but the more powerful the better. That was the only way she’d become stronger. The only way she’d get her soul.
She wanted to talk to Tress—or Fallow—about her Sieken Blade and why it was so lethal against Lesser Demons but ineffective against Gorath. What was so special about him that made him so tough?
Even Tress had said about how much stronger he was now than before.
‘Next time, we’ll have him,’ Damon said. He’d crossed the room and sat in the other armchair before the fireplace, pulling it up to sit closer to Tress.
The assassin nodded, but didn’t say anything.
‘I know you’d said about Gorath being back and everything, but I don’t think any of us thought he’d turn up at the house!’
Tress sniffed, wiped her nose, but remained silent.
Seila huffed. She had no idea why Damon was bothering with her, especially after how insulting she’d been. ‘Save yourself the trouble, Damon. You might as well grab one of her axes and throw it at Gorath next time we see him. It’ll do more than she will.’
Damon ignored the venom in her voice and carried on talking to Tress. ‘That’s right. Those axes of yours did serious damage. None of us could touch him!’
‘I know,’ Tress sighed. She looked away, as though considering whether to stay for the conversation or leave.
Seila hoped she’d leave.
‘What’s it made of? Could Fallow make me some bolts out of the same thing? Then I’d be able to help when we fight him again.’ Tej couldn’t keep the excitement from his voice.
‘She can’t,’ Tress said. ‘They’re from my home world. A material that is in abundance in my dimension, but doesn’t exist in yours.’
‘You can’t go and get some more?’ Damon asked.
‘It takes me a long time and an awful lot of power to travel between worlds. If I go back, it could be a year before I return.’
Seila narrowed her eyes. Delgo and Fallow—if they had travelled interdimensionally—had popped there and back within a few days. Why would it take Tress so long? ‘Sure she’s just not trying to hog all the glory for herself?’
Tress glared at her. ‘Excuse me?’
‘Your weapons are the only thing that can harm Gorath. You want to kill him. If you bring us back material of the same stuff your axes are made of, then that means any one of us could kill him. Not what you want, is it?’
‘You don’t have the first idea of what you’re talking about, Phantom.’
Seila wasn’t intimidated. She held out her hand and her Sieken Blade appeared, unblemished and ready. ‘You want to take me on? I’ll happily put you in your place.’
Tress got to her feet, axes in hand, still bloody from the battle. ‘How dare you speak to me like that, Phantom. You’ve got yourself mixed up in something so much bigger than you, it’s laughable. You’re a child. An ungrateful little child with a magic sword and not much else going for her.’
Seila slid her feet apart and widened her stance. She was done with Tress’s ego. ‘And you’re a spoiled brat who can’t fight when it comes to it.’
‘Stop it!’ Damon said, stepping between them with his hands raised. Flames burst into life along his fingertips. ‘Fallow already told you to back off, Seila. Don’t make this worse.’
Seila shifted her gaze from Tress to Damon. The half-Elemental pleaded with his eyes, but she couldn’t stand to be insulted by Tress.
‘She has a problem with me. You. All of us. And you’re going to sit down and let her say whatever she wants?’ Seila almost growled.
Damon fought to keep his voice from rising. ‘We need her. We need you! Gorath is something bigger than us, yes. I get that. Let’s not ruin our chance of beating him because of your egos!’
Seila frowned. He sounded like Amber. Far too sensible. ‘What’s the point of staying here? She won’t help us, fine. You stick with her and see what happens. I’m done.’
‘Seila, don’t be stupid,’ Damon said. ‘Everyone’s tired. Exhausted. Don’t do something silly because you’re stressed.’
Seila balled her fists, kept her eyes on Damon. Tej lingered near in her peripheral vision. She’d given him her sword and he’d used it, protected Ashante and Tress, then given it back. She’d trusted him in the heat of battle.
She couldn’t remember the last time she’d trusted anyone.
And she was stressed, as much as she hated to admit it. There were too many unknowns, too many what ifs, and she didn’t like any of it.
‘Fine. But I’m staying away from her.’ She jerked her chin in Tress’s direction, then turned and walked outside.
She needed some air.
9
Seila sat atop the quiet pillar in the gardens of Caramond House. For the first time in as long as she could remember, her mind was clear of demonic voices vying for her attention. There was no hissing, snarling, or bellowing. No hunger pangs, no lust to kill.
It was just her alone with her own thoughts.
She’d always wondered how it would feel to be free of demons. To no longer have to hunt them down, put herself in danger, and fight. She’d always assumed it would be somewhat peaceful. She’d lost count of the number of times she’d been trying to figure something out when a demon’s voice entered her mind and distracted her.
Now the demons of Fernhampton had left with Gorath, and Fallow’s enchantments had been restored to their full power, there was nothing but silence. Claes had put out the remaining fires, but the grass would need time to recover. Patches of brown foliage dotted the garden like a Dalmatian. One side of the hedge maze had blackened, and even the lower hanging branches of the trees hadn’t escaped unscathed. Only the lake had been unaffected, its still waters cool and inviting.
Seila shifted where she sat, her legs dangling over the top of the pillar.
Hard to think that barely an hour before, the place had been a battlefield. Chaos everywhere.
Claes had burned the demons that had died on their grounds, and the stench of bonfires filled the air. There was little to be done about that except wait for it to pass, but Seila still wrinkled her nose at it.
She stared up at the sky. Flying away was still a tempting option.
But if she left now, she wouldn’t come back. Her pride wouldn’t let her. And it would mean all her questions would remain unanswered, all the chances of fighting stronger opponents with backup would disappear.
And she’d lose Fallow’s knowledge about demons, Phantoms, and her soul.
Damon was right. She didn’t want to do anything rash just because Lady Tress had riled her up.
But she had enjoyed the fact that the all powerful Lady had some clear weaknesses. There was a chink in h
er armour.
The same would be true of Gorath. For all his might, he wasn’t invulnerable. Tress’s axes had made him bleed. Seila wondered if she could defeat him by driving her Sieken Blade into the axe wounds. Perhaps it couldn’t pierce his hide, but he would be exposed by Tress’s axes. She could let Tress deal a tonne of damage—if she didn’t freeze again—then she could swoop in for the victory blow and finish him.
She watched Tress enter the gardens, her steps slower than before. Less confident. Her eyes were downcast, and she hadn’t spotted Seila watching from above.
A ripple of pity ran through Seila, but she promptly squashed it away.
She’d spent too long with Damon and Tej. She was getting soft.
Tress stood by the entrance to the hedge maze, where she’d spent so long trapped by fear. She took off her axes and placed them on the ground. Then she slung off her jacket, buckles jingling, and dropped it beside her weapons. Her boots followed next, followed by her belt.
Curious, Seila watched Tress walk barefoot across the lawn, to a flat part of the garden, where she was surrounded by nothing but grass. Tress picked a spot and sat down cross-legged, eyes closed, the wind blowing her hair gently in all directions.
Was she meditating?
Seila watched as Tress took a couple of minutes to settle into position, then her breathing slowed and her body relaxed.
Seila shrugged. She meditated, too, although it was normally to clear her mind and focus her hunt for demons. She wondered what on earth the pompous Lady Tress mediated for. Perhaps she was looking for her fighting spirit.
She heard laughter, and Seila looked back at the house in time to see Damon and Tej walk into the garden. Both laughed with such a carefree ease that Seila was almost jealous. They’d known each other since childhood, it was no wonder the two of them were so close.
Neither of them seemed to notice Tress as they walked onto the grass, jostling and wrestling with one another as they were prone to when they were messing around with no work to do.
