by Joe Jackson
Devin was knocked from his seat by a wave of power that roiled out from Kari, an invisible wall of force that Kari could feel extending outward from herself. Devin was inside of it, and she could feel his life-force even when she closed her eyes. Her senses extended beyond her mortal body, enhanced by her faith in – her love for – her deity. Kari could sense Devin rising to his feet: that he was her friend and not a threat, that his faith was even stronger than her own, and that he held divine power within him as one of Zalkar’s priests. Devin got to his feet and Kari could somehow see that his expression was a mixture of surprise and pride, even while she had her eyes closed. He muttered a quiet prayer and gestured toward Kari.
Kari felt the surge as the priest channeled Zalkar’s power through himself to summon a bolt of light and cast it in her direction. She imagined Zalkar swatting the bolt aside, and focused on keeping the protective aura up. Just as Devin had suggested, the bolt slowed and dissipated before it even reached Kari, and with her eyes still closed, she smiled at the priest. Kari had never considered her faith strong, but she realized that was because she misunderstood it, and not because it was missing from her life. Zalkar clearly had faith in her, loved and cherished her, and he was keeping his word through the Oath to bolster and protect her. Kari felt ready to face Turillia – and possibly Emma – because she now understood that she was not, and never would be, alone.
“Well done,” Devin said. “Remember, Zalkar’s power is yours to wield, but do not give in to the temptation to use your own power. Fight to defend those you love, and use his power. Do not doubt your faith in him; wield it as a shield.”
“Will it be strong enough to stop Emma?” Kari asked, sheathing her blades.
“If your faith stays strong, it can do anything,” the priest said. “Remember, it is based on your faith and your will, and your willpower is bolstered by Zalkar’s own. Rest on that promise, and let him fight for you, through you.”
Kari nodded. “Will you give me one final blessing?”
“Of course,” Devin answered, but before Kari could even kneel before him, the front door of the temple opened, and several other priests entered. Kari didn’t know all of their names, but she recognized the heads of each of the other churches on Temple Street, and Piotyr was among them.
The half-elite priest regarded the others with him and then nodded his head toward Kari. “We felt Zalkar’s power flow through you,” he explained. “Since the time has come to spring the trap, we will all give you the blessings of all of our lords, for you fight for the city and all her people, and you do not fight alone.”
Kari knelt before Devin and bowed her head. The priest laid his hands on her shoulders and intoned, “Zalkar, the Unyielding, Demonhunter Patron: watch over our sister as she goes into battle. Keep her safe from harm, and grant her the strength of mind and body to overcome the demons who threaten our home. Fill her with the spirit of all of our brethren, and the comfort of knowing that she carries our love and hope into battle with her.”
“Grant her the valor of the great lion, master of beasts, and shield her as the master does his pride,” Master Vlad prayed to Ambergaust the Lifegiver. Kari kept her eyes closed. There was a pleasant and familiar tingle in her mind that she couldn’t quite explain, but she thought perhaps it was the power of the allied deities synergizing.
“Imbue her with the glory of the rising sun, that she may cast the demons back to the dark places from which they have crawled,” intoned Piotyr in prayer to Kaelariel.
“Fill her with your skill, and grant her the eyes of the night, that even the darkness will not hide the demons from the judgment she brings upon them,” said a fourth priest, and by his prayer Kari recognized it was the head of Garra Ktarra’s church.
“Gift to her your unending wisdom, that she may see the truth of all things in this dark situation, into which she walks willingly to defend us all,” intoned the final priestess, a prayer for guidance to Bek the Pious, who was Lord Ambergaust’s daughter.
When the priests finished their prayers, Kari opened her eyes and rose to her feet. She had received the blessing of not one, but five deities, and in that moment, she knew any hope Turillia had of victory was dashed. The only thing that remained was to spring the trap properly, to bring the situation to a head as soon as possible to safeguard the people Kari was sworn to protect. Kari saluted the priests in the demonhunter way, and each of them bowed their heads to the veteran demonhunter respectfully.
“Go, my sister,” Piotyr said. “Shine your light in the darkness, and know that we and our lords are with you.”
Chapter XXI – Strength of the Avatar
The rain was relentless, steady in its beat, though it wasn’t terribly heavy. Kari stood on the porch of a dry goods store across from the old city hall, watching the dark building for any sign of activity. A lightning strike illuminated the sad, old white building shortly before its walls were shaken by a powerful peal of thunder. The storm was in full swing, and still moving in, so Kari was glad to spend what time she could sheltered from its fury by the store’s darkened porch. There had still been no sign of Turillia yet, but Kari had little doubt the succubus would come.
The trap was as well-set as it was going to get. Kari had instructed each of her friends on where to take up positions to try to cut off all avenues of escape. Eli and Katarina volunteered to guard the two northern roads leading away from the old city hall. Those were the shortest routes to the city’s outer walls, so Kari was glad to have the strong, young paladin and her fearless half-corlyps friend guarding those routes. Sherman guarded the road leading to the east, toward Dominick’s house: Kari wanted a paladin in that direction should trouble arise at the wizard’s home. On the same token, Piotyr guarded the southeast road, in case any trouble at Dominick’s home turned out to be the shadow demon. Sharyn watched the road toward the southwest, which led toward Black’s tower, using her skill set as a hunter and tracker to keep herself hidden from sight, in case Turillia came on foot. And finally, Deirdre guarded the road westward, toward the stable square.
As Kari had hoped, the marshal confirmed that Lord Black had left his tower not long after Kari’s visit, and had refused the company of his guards when he took to the streets. Kari was confident the message had been given to Turillia; it remained to be seen if the succubus sensed the trap, or walked right into it. Kari had given no indication to Lord Black that her friends would be guarding the roads leading away from the city hall, so she was confident that unless Turillia came from an unexpected direction, she’d have no idea how many allies Kari had close by. With her heavy cloak drawn around her, Kari sat down on a bench on the store’s front porch, hoping to blend into the shadows of night. She wasn’t sure how sharp the eyes of a half-syrinthian, half-succubus would be, but simply being out of sight and steeped in shadow was Kari’s best option that allowed her to maintain a good view of the city hall.
Water dripped from Kari’s snout, but she hardly even noticed its cold sting, or the minor itch that accompanied the water’s tickling path. The rain blew sideways now and then, chilling her face, which was about all that stood out from the cloak. She glanced up into the dark skies that continued to throw down the uncomfortable drops, and she couldn’t help but grimace as she considered it would be dangerous for Markus to fly under these conditions, let alone land his majestic griffon on the angled roof of a building. While Markus wasn’t the key to Kari’s coming confrontation with Turillia, he would be instrumental in blocking off an escape route. If he couldn’t land on the city hall’s roof, then Kari might be alone against both Turillia and Emma, or Turillia might be able to escape through the bell tower.
Kari glanced to her right as a patrol came through the area. The two human watchmen didn’t even regard the terra-dracon demonhunter sitting in the shadows of the porch. Their voices were muffled and they spoke in quiet tones, and it was obvious they were not happy to be out in the cold rain. They had their cloaks drawn around them with the cowls up,
so only the badges of their office and the Earl’s insignia on the cloaks marked them as guards. Within less than two minutes, they had taken stock of the small square that fronted the old city hall, and then continued on their way. Kari guessed that it would likely be about twenty minutes before she saw another patrol.
A covered wagon drawn by a single horse went by in the opposite direction, and Kari wondered what would bring travelers out in this weather. Horses and carriages were fairly rare on the streets of Barcon; most traders seemed to get their deliveries early in the morning so that the streets were clear for foot traffic the rest of the day. The wagon had only a single, cloaked driver, and Kari couldn’t make out any passengers or cargo in the back as it rolled past her. A flash of lightning further illuminated the wagon, but still Kari couldn’t see any detail in the covered portion.
At last the wagon rolled out of the square, and Kari turned her attention back to the city hall while the sound of the horse’s steps and the wet mud splitting beneath the wheels faded into the distance. Something caught her eye when the lightning flashed again, and even with the peal of thunder that followed, Kari heard the distinct sound of a shutter closing. She rose to her feet and walked to the edge of the porch, and she was amazed at how acute her night vision became. Her ability to see in the dark as a rir was fairly powerful, but when she looked out over the square, she began to see things almost as if there was a persistent flash of lightning.
She assumed it was Garra Ktarra’s blessing that was making her eyesight stronger, and she noticed a strange set of footprints in the mud. The strangest part was that they started in the middle of the road, and Kari suddenly realized that whoever had left them had jumped from the covered wagon that passed by. Her eyes followed the trail quickly toward the old city hall, and at the end, Kari saw that one of the boards nailed over the windows had been pried loose.
Kari drew her swords and dashed across the street in the pouring rain, and she realized her heavy cloak had blocked the glow of Zalkar’s symbol. Her cloak was open now, and the light blue glow of her lord’s symbol illuminated her steps as she approached the breached window. Kari was nervous about entering through the window, in case the succubus was waiting just inside to strike. She pulled the wooden cover away from the window with a scimitar, and did her best to glance around inside as much as possible without presenting an easy target. The inside was dimly lit by a reflection of some upstairs illumination. With the steady beat of the rain dulling both her hearing and her sense of smell, Kari wasn’t sure if Turillia was just inside waiting for her. She reached down into her heart, then, using the projection of Zalkar’s grace to see if the succubus was near. She detected nothing, so she pulled the board further away and climbed inside quickly. Fortunately, no one struck at her, and the sense of life-forces that accompanied her projected aura detected nothing close.
The inside of the old city hall certainly spoke of it being a long-abandoned building. Kari entered into the main chamber, which appeared to be an open assembly room. While most of it was shrouded with cobwebs and old, ruined furniture, it was clear someone had used the hearth for cooking. A cast-iron tea kettle hung on a spit inside the large fireplace, and there was what looked to be an icebox a short distance from it. Kari wasn’t sure where Emma was getting her supply of food, but any doubt she may have had that Emma was actually living in the old city hall was quickly dispelled. The portion of the assembly room that Emma had been using was clean and well-maintained, though that hardly struck Kari as odd. The demonhunter got the impression that as a manipulator, everything the mallasti girl did was carefully ordered.
What did strike Kari as odd was that the only muddy footprints inside were her own. Someone had clearly entered the building after leaving a set of tracks in the mud outside, and Kari was at a loss as to how they left no footprints after they entered. She glanced warily at the ceiling, but the succubus wasn’t suspended from there waiting to strike, so Kari took in her surroundings. The interior of the building was warm, but it was uniform and clearly not from the hearth. Its fire was dead, and had been for some time, with no embers and no traces of warmth. The light coming from upstairs was stronger here, and when Kari glanced up the staircase, she saw that by the tone and lack of movement it was likely of the magical variety. There were no voices, so Kari wasn’t sure if perhaps Emma had fled the building when Turillia approached. It seemed unlikely that one or the other was already dead; it hadn’t taken Kari long to get into the building.
She concentrated on the aura she was projecting, but she still couldn’t sense either of the two demons. Memories played through her mind of her days thieving on the streets of Solaris, and Kari went up on her toes and began stalking toward the staircase. She pulled her cloak closed to cover up the glowing symbol of Zalkar; she was pretty sure Turillia had to be on the stairs or up on the second floor, so she wanted whatever element of surprise she could get. Still she heard no voices, no sounds of movement. It was possible Emma had fled and Turillia had already given chase, but even if so, that didn’t explain where Turillia’s muddy footprints were.
Kari crept up the stairs, keeping to the sides of the steps to avoid putting her full weight in the center, where they would creak. The sounds of her passage were minimal, and without the telltale glowing blue light of Zalkar’s symbol, she was pretty sure she could get to the top of the steps without giving herself away. The glow from upstairs became more intense as she neared the top. Kari barely flinched when the thunder boomed outside, rattling the walls of the old building. Carefully she crept up step by step, and the stairs were built so that she could perch one or two below the top and look into the second floor, hopefully without being seen.
Kari released Zalkar’s aura, letting it fold back into herself as she neared the top of the stairs; she didn’t want that to give her away, either. She took in a quiet, deep breath and held it, and she slowly dropped to one knee on the second step down from the top. She leaned carefully on the steps, laying down along them so she could get a good view into the upper room. The door to the left of the stairs’ top was open, and Kari angled her head so she could glance in with one eye and keep as much out of sight as possible.
Emma was there, standing at the far end of the large, open second floor. She was looking out a window next to the ladder to the bell tower. If she sensed Kari’s presence, she gave no indication. Kari couldn’t see Turillia anywhere. She assumed if the succubus was in the room, Emma would surely know and give some clue – unless they were working together. Kari tried to keep her breathing steady, and slowly leaned further to get a better glimpse of the room.
Other than the near corners, she could see almost the entire room, sparse as it was: there was a small mat and blanket along the east wall, which was apparently Emma’s bed. There wasn’t much else in the room, as if the place had been gutted when it was abandoned. Still, there were no footprints and no sign of Turillia’s passing or presence. Kari slowly moved back around the corner and out of any line of sight for Emma, and she glanced down the stairs at her own light footprints. She wondered if the footprints outside were Emma’s. If so, it would mean Kari had sprung the trap on the wrong demon, and foiled her own plan. Still, it made no sense: Emma would have left footprints inside the building if that were the case.
Kari sighed silently and pulled the manacles from under her cloak: this trap was going to net her a demon, one way or another. She trusted the magical manacles that had let Eli’s friends bring Ciceria back to Gnarr against her will would do the same to Emma. She just had to get close enough to get them on the mallasti girl. Kari considered whether it might be easier to approach Emma in friendly tones, and then try to get the manacles on her. The only other option was to sneak up behind the mallasti and do so. Either way, it was risky: Emma hadn’t been surprised when Turillia tried to sneak up on her in the graveyard. Kari weighed her options.
Ultimately, she decided the old, creaky floor of the upper level was likely to give her away in either case. She s
tood straight and entered the upper room, and she took only a moment to check the near corners for any sign of Turillia. Still there was no trace of the half-succubus. Kari kept Zalkar’s power close in the front of her mind; though she didn’t project it outward, she kept it firmly in place should Emma turn on her and unleash a magical attack. She tucked the manacles in a cloak pocket, ready to draw them out and try to slap them on the mallasti girl, if she got close enough.
Emma acknowledged her presence after only a few steps. The mallasti girl turned her head to the side, and Kari got a glimpse of her glowing orange eyes again. Emma didn’t say anything, and didn’t turn to face Kari; she simply went back to looking out the window while Kari closed the remaining distance between them. For a minute, Kari thought perhaps she had Emma figured wrong, and that the mallasti girl wanted to speak to her. She realized her error when she got closer and Emma whirled on her the same way she had with Turillia. The mallasti girl held up one clawed hand, the fingers splayed outward, palm facing Kari, though she didn’t extend her arm right away to unleash an attack.
“You fool,” the mallasti girl said in her strange accent. Her orange eyes were intense, though her expression was impassive, as usual. “Not only have you led her right to this one, but you have walked straight into her trap.”
Before Kari could even ask what she was talking about, or turn to see if Turillia had been hiding close by, Emma unleashed a lightning bolt. Kari pushed back against it with the strength of her faith, but the bolt tore through her barriers and then passed through her body, and Kari’s legs buckled. Like the lightning bolt in the graveyard, it seemed to hit Kari like a whip-crack to the heart, and all the strength drained from her body. It was not a typical shock spell: Kari’s body was not in total pain, simply limp and powerless. Zalkar’s power and Kari’s faith had done nothing to deflect the attack, and Kari wondered if it was because she had collapsed the aura, or because her willpower wasn’t strong enough compared to Emma’s own. Kari got onto her side, facing Emma, but she didn’t have the strength to even get to her knees yet: she was completely at Emma’s mercy. Worse than that, the blue glow of Zalkar’s symbol filled the room, and Kari’s worst fears came to bear.
