by Joe Jackson
If he was at all aware of Kari’s presence, he gave no indication, speaking tersely to the mallasti servant that followed him one pace behind and to his left. Kari could barely tell that they were speaking, let alone hear what they were saying, but she assumed they were speaking in infernal anyway. Kari simply hoped Emma wasn’t telling her master that Kari was there, what they had spoken about, or – worse yet – that Kari had gone to see Morduri. As she thought the last, though, Kari realized that if Emma had been sent to escort her to Morduri’s chamber, it was more than likely she had done so by the Overking’s order. Kari was about to leave to go find the others when her sponsor made their appearance on the meeting hall floor.
Just as Kari had thought only moments before, Koursturaux was clearly the same species as the Overking, and far more impressive to behold in person than either Eli’s description or Morduri’s drawing suggested. She was at once softer and yet harder than her male counterpart, all graceful curves and barely-restrained sexual allure, and yet the modesty of her ebon clothing and the sheer beauty of the greatsword across her back said that this was no consort to be trifled with. Her eight-foot frame made her appear lanky, but Kari could tell that there was a lean strength there that the long muscles belied. Her horns curved gracefully back from her brow just as in Morduri’s astonishing rendition, and she had long raven hair that had been set back in four even braids. In the back of Kari’s mind, the image of a tigress manifested itself in connection with Koursturaux: a beautiful yet powerful killer.
Kari was surprised when the female demon king drew up beside the Overking and, after saying something to him, kissed him on the cheek. Several other kings filtered into the meeting hall from the teleportation dais, and it was not lost on Kari when Koursturaux turned to watch them file past her without taking her seat. First among them was a golden-eyed mallasti male that had to be King Emanitar. He was rather nondescript for a king, looking like a fairly typical member of his species, if perhaps a bit taller. His robe was casual, and he greeted Koursturaux politely before passing by to seat himself in the fifth seat on Koursturaux’ side.
Next came a sight that nearly made Kari’s head spin: Celigus and another king who was so perfectly identical to him that only the difference in their attire and the well-known black sword across Celigus’ back let Kari tell them apart. The other, Kari remembered from her perusals of the Anthraxis Council Codex, had to be King Arlerase Chinchala, who was either Celigus’ cousin or his son, depending on who one asked. Even the Codex wasn’t sure which was the truth of it, but staring at the two walking side by side and speaking quietly, Kari got the impression they must be father and son. Even still, how Celigus had sired a child that looked identical to him was a mystery, unless he had a mistress or kast’wa somewhere that also looked just like him. Celigus and Arlerase both greeted the Overking and Koursturaux respectfully, and then Celigus took the third seat on Koursturaux’ side while Arlerase continued to the last on that same side.
The next king to make an appearance set Kari’s feet in motion. The nine-foot, green and gold cobra-like creature could be none other than Sekassus the Calculating, the very king Kari had come to negotiate with. She turned away quickly before there was any real chance for him to notice her distinctive, winged terra-dracon form at the railing, but the image of his scaled and scowling countenance stuck with her regardless. His face was so potently reminiscent of what she had seen when she dreamed about Sakkrass, and she wondered if Turillia had indeed been able to twist her dreams to try to blur her perceptions of the deity and the demon king.
Kari made her way hastily to the library, and found her companions after only a couple of minutes of searching. Danilynn and Aeligos had their heads together, the priestess going through some writing on a map they studied. Sonja was seated in a deep chair that made her seem small even at six-foot-seven. Eli was chatting lightly with Eliza. All of them looked up when Kari reached them, but Kari motioned back toward the stairs. “We should all go get some breakfast, and I can tell you what I’ve learned so far. And you can let me know if you’ve found anything worthwhile yet.”
The others gathered their books and returned them to their places, and then everyone but Eliza filed out of the tower, giving the circular opening to the lower level a wide berth. Once back at the inn, they were able to order some food and drinks, and Kari spent the time in between visits from their hostess filling the others in on what Morduri had told and asked of her. No one seemed all that keen on Kari accepting such a vague, open-ended proposal from the demon king, but Kari made it clear they were headed nowhere but home if she didn’t. She promised to think on it for as long as she could, but then shifted her focus to what the others had learned.
Aeligos checked to see where their hostess was before he began, “Mostly, we’re just getting a feel for how the library is laid out. Unlike back home, history books and such don’t just get tossed away when they’re updated. So we’ve found Codices of the Kings dating back a few thousand years, to when there were over fifty of them.”
“Fifty?” Kari repeated, and she thought to herself. “I guess that explains why there’s so many floors to the Overking’s palace.”
“Aeligos is picking up the infernal language as fast as I can teach it,” Danilynn put in. “As you saw when you found us, we’ve been going through maps to get a rough idea of the sizes of the realms and how long a journey we’re actually considering.” She paused for a minute when Qin Lixiao brought over some of their meals. “I thought Pataria and Tess’Vorg sounded like fairly large realms based on estimates of how long it would take to cross them, but…”
She trailed off and shook her head, so Aeligos spoke up again. “But compared to some of the larger realms, they’re tiny,” he said. “King Koursturaux’ realm of Mas’tolinor looks like it would take months to cross. King Baal’s realm of Antumorgh is nearly the same size, and between them is King Abaddon’s realm of Horturris which, while not as large, is still much, much larger than Pataria or Tess’Vorg.”
“How big is Sorelizar?” Kari asked, but they waited while their hostess delivered the rest of their meals. Kari took a moment to pray along with Danilynn, and the others did so as well.
“It’s about twice as big as Tess’Vorg or Pataria,” Aeligos answered. “Based on what you told me, it seems like Sorelizar is set up to take advantage of the Seven Days’ Grace law. From what I can tell, it will take you almost seven days to reach its capital – also called Sorelizar – from any of its borders. I doubt that’s a coincidence.”
Kari nodded and turned to Sonja. “Have you found anything interesting in the books?”
“Interesting, yes. Useful, no,” Sonja said quietly. “Like Aeligos said, some of these books are older, and either irrelevant or simply wrong now. I found a book called The War of Seven Fronts, and it’s about Celigus’ rise to power, so I’m getting closer to the present-day tomes we’re looking for. But aside from finding out that Celigus apparently had a twin brother named Sherkenn, I haven’t found anything of worth.”
“Secretive old bastard, isn’t he?” Kari muttered, and the others chuckled.
“Not surprising, considering where he lives and how he likely came to power,” Eli said.
“True,” Kari said. “Well, keep up the good work. I’m going to avoid the palace until the session is done; I don’t want Sekassus to see me, even if he does know I’m here and planning to meet with him. See if you can find a list of the current kings, their princes, and anything else about their realms, people, and allies or enemies. I don’t need to know about their mistresses or bathing habits, but try to get me as much information as you can about who’s in charge, who’s next in line behind them, and what they think of their fellows on the Council. That’ll give me a place to start when we get back home and try to make sense of all of this.”
Aeligos agreed in infernal, which prompted Danilynn to correct him on something to do with his grammar. They both chuckled, and Kari couldn’t help but smile at how
fast Aeligos picked things up. With everyone in agreement, the friends began to enjoy their breakfast.
Chapter IX – Complications
Kari’s days felt fruitless. While the others found the tomes they were looking for after a few days, Kari had no opportunities to speak with any of the kings. It seemed impossible, with the number of commoners and rivals’ retainers that requested their attention on a daily basis – which was to say nothing of the fact that the Council sessions themselves took nearly all day. Kari wanted one of her friends to listen in on the sessions – many of the city’s residents did so – but she was leery about being too conspicuous, so she simply had them research instead. Eliza showed Kari around those parts of the city she had any business visiting, but that had taken only a single day.
The days felt like they passed too quickly despite the fact that Kari had very little to do herself. She supposed she could spend time with Danilynn and Aeligos to see how much of the infernal tongue she could learn herself, but Aeligos’ concerns about slowing down everyone’s progress rang much truer for Kari. She didn’t pick things up anywhere near as quickly as her brother-in-law, and she knew without a doubt that they’d probably all end up frustrated trying to get her acquainted with a completely alien tongue. Eli seemed to have found ways to be of help to their companions, but Kari assumed that was more out of his desire to be close to Danilynn in such a dangerous place than due to his work ethic.
Kari went to the palace on the fourth day of the Council’s session, having decided to go and speak directly with Celigus. He wasn’t involved in the plan directly, so Kari didn’t think it would seem too suspicious if anyone saw them talking. She wasn’t sure if he’d be willing or able to tell her anything, and suspected she might even receive a verbal lashing for ignoring his advice on whether or not to even come to Mehr’Durillia. Whatever the case, though, he was the one king on the entire Council who Kari believed she could put even an ounce of trust in.
Padding through the foyer, Kari made her way around to the teleportation dais that would hopefully take her to Celigus’ personal chambers. It was still early; once Kari had gotten used to the change in time, it had been fairly simple to get accustomed to rising with the dawn here in Anthraxis. She got ready and came to the palace before any of her companions had even risen. The meeting hall floor below was deserted, and there were only a couple of the incubi standing here and there on the main level. Kari took advantage of the deserted foyer and strode with confidence toward the rear dais.
Kari came to a stop, suddenly quite still when she beheld the scene before her. There, at the base of the dais, was King Morduri, speaking with Emma in hushed tones. The mallasti was dressed in that beautiful, intricate robe again, while Morduri wore only his trousers and a bow across his shoulders. Kari wondered if he had gone out hunting, but she knew little of the lay of the land beyond Anthraxis’ walls. She could see little from the city – even when she had sat up on Morduri’s balcony – that suggested there might be good hunting nearby. As she thought on it, though, Kari wondered if she was thinking of the right kind of hunting.
The elestram king and mallasti slave sharing a long and – so far as Kari could tell, given the differences between their species and her own – passionate kiss nearly stopped her heart. She backed away and out of sight around the corner of the wall, hoping neither of them had seen her while their attention was on each other. A relationship between Morduri and Emma could mean a number of things, but Kari was fairly certain none of them were good. Her immediate reaction was to feel betrayed; was Emma a part of this plot now, too? Did this all have to do with Kari being Salvation’s Dawn, and nothing to do with humiliating Sekassus? Was it all, in fact, a trap – perhaps of the Overking’s design – meant to lure Kari out to a place where she had no defenses whatsoever?
Anger welled up in Kari’s chest, and though she reminded herself not to do anything rash when dealing with a demon king, she turned the corner and strode toward them. She would let her presence act as all the confrontation she needed, hopefully without her having to say a word. When she passed the dividing wall and into sight of the teleportation dais, Morduri had taken Emma by the hand and was leading her up onto the pad. “Your Lordship,” Kari called.
Morduri turned toward Kari and blinked very slowly when he saw her. He said nothing immediately, but there was barely a trace of patience in the depths of those amethyst eyes. He turned and glanced at Emma, whose own gaze had fallen to the floor. When the elestram turned back to Kari, he sighed and asked, “Yes? What is it?”
“I was hoping to speak with you, if you have the time,” Kari said. She really had little to say to him, but seeing these two together aggravated her far more than it probably should have. If she had to go up to his bedroom and babble at him for an hour to keep him away from Emma, Kari felt like it would be more than worth her time to do so.
“I don’t,” he said. “And frankly, I have nothing more to say to you than I already have. Now, I have but scant hours before the day’s session begins, and plan to spend that the way I see fit. I suggest, if you still haven’t managed to reach a decision, that you spend more time with your friends, and less pestering me.”
Kari was shocked at his sudden change in manners, but at the same time, she wasn’t sure exactly why. He was a demon king, after all. She watched him step onto the dais with Emma, and there was a brief moment where the mallasti met Kari’s gaze. She expected to see smugness or even a triumphant gleam in the girl’s glowing orange orbs, but that was not what Kari saw at all. Kari couldn’t claim to have any real knowledge of the mannerisms of her demonic enemies, but she still felt quite certain that what she saw in Emma’s eyes was shame.
In the blink of an eye, the demon king and the mallasti slave disappeared, whisked away to his personal chambers above. Kari very briefly entertained the thought of following them and interrupting, but she knew that could lead only to disaster. Whether Lord Morduri took offense enough to kill Kari on the spot, or simply refuse to help her whatsoever, it wouldn’t be a smart thing to do at all. As angry as she was, Kari kept in mind that she had found some semblance of trustworthiness and “goodwill” from the demon king, and that she shouldn’t do anything to jeopardize that unless she had more than a hunch to go on.
Kari stepped up onto the dais herself, but nothing happened immediately. She thought of Celigus, and almost as soon as the image of him crossed her mind, she found herself in a dimly-lit cylindrical room, exactly like when Emma took her to see Morduri. The door didn’t open, so Kari cleared her throat and said, “Karian Vanador, requesting to see Lord Chinchala.”
There was a long delay, but then the doorway to the room slid aside, and Kari stepped into a bedroom that was much more lavishly decorated than the one belonging to Morduri. The elestram king had only a bed with a couple of nightstands and shelves of books, while Celigus’ chamber more closely resembled that of an emperor. Everything – from the intricately carved, mahogany four-poster bed that was large enough for probably half a dozen or more people of Kari’s size, to the triple mirror-adorned dresser that said he frequently had female visitors, to the maps covered in tick-marks and arrows that adorned the flat wall that separated bed and bath chambers – said that this was the personal chamber of someone powerful and important.
Celigus wasn’t anywhere to be seen, and Kari wondered if she was going to end up in a bath with a demon king for the second time in a week. She started forward slowly, as if the eight foot, muscular demon king might be hiding behind one of the narrow posts of his bed, or else underneath it. Once she made it several paces into the room, she could see that he was standing out on the balcony in the light of the sunrise. Kari hesitated a moment, not sure if she should approach him without his beckoning to her, but she assumed if he had let her into his chamber, he wanted her to come speak to him.
Kari hardly reached the open glass doors to the balcony before the demon king, leaning out against the railing, said, “I’m curious what it is about p
eople from Citaria that they simply do not listen to me.” Kari balked, stuttering for a second, and Celigus straightened out and turned to face her. “Didn’t I tell you not to come here?”
“Did you really think a one-word answer was going to sway me?” Kari managed.
The demon king looked toward the door to the bath chamber for a few drawn-out seconds before turning his attention back to her. “No, I suppose I didn’t,” he said. “You’re stubborn and bull-headed, just like your boyfriend.”
“Boyfriend?” Kari repeated, but then it dawned on her. “Kris? He’s not my boyfriend, and never has been, and I am not bull-headed and stubborn. I don’t think he is, either.”
“Right,” Celigus said with a sarcastic nod. “He asked that you be assigned to his brigade because he needed your tactical advice, and wanted one of the best demonhunters in the world to be stationed up in the mountains, away from the bulk of the fighting. You can’t possibly be so dense that you would believe that.”
“Don’t call me stupid,” Kari spat.
“I didn’t call you stupid, I called you bull-headed and stubborn,” he returned. “If you were stupid, you wouldn’t realize what I said was true. The fact that you simply try to pretend it’s not means you’re stubborn.” He chuckled lightly through his nose when Kari folded her arms across her chest. “Now, what did you come up here for?”
“Advice, though now I don’t think I really even want it,” she said, wanting to walk away from him, but a little afraid to, regardless of his alliance with her world’s pantheon.
