Demon Lord III - Grey God (14 page)

"I will wake
them."

Mirra shook
Mithran and Grem awake, and they ate another meal before leaving
the hut.

Their return
to the God Realm was achieved with a Move that took them to the
Realm Gate. Mirra again chose to travel with her husband, and
suffered the consequences. When Mirra, Grem and Mithran had mounted
the waiting demon steeds, they passed through the Gate. They had
been walking through the God Realm's greyness for several minutes
when Kayos glanced back at the trio, then at Bane.

"You choose to
walk?"

Bane shrugged.
"If you are, then so will I."

"It is not a
competition."

The greyness
around them began to swirl in slow patterns, gradually turning into
a real snowstorm, and the area darkened. Snow crunched under their
boots and their breath steamed in the chill air. It nipped Bane
through his clothes, making him draw his cloak around himself. His
silent command made the demon steeds exude heat to keep their
passengers warm. Sensing the presence of something on either side
of the narrow trail that Kayos illuminated with his glow, Bane
sharpened his sight, discovering that they walked through a huge,
dark forest. Beyond Kayos' dim light was only blackness and the
sense of looming trees, and they walked in a radiant cocoon of
falling flakes.

An oppressive
silence pressed in on Bane like the walls of trees that skirted the
narrow path. From time to time Kayos paused to examine the ground,
which to Bane appeared to be pristine snow. He wondered how they
could possibly get lost when they could only follow the path. Some
time later he found out, when Kayos, after one of his examinations,
turned slightly to the left. Bane expected to reach the trees and
leave the path, but the trail continued ahead as if they had not
turned at all, yet he knew they had.

The forest
seemed interminable, and Bane noticed an occasional pair of glowing
eyes amongst the trees. He wondered what manner of beasts watched
them pass with such hunger, yet lacked the courage to attack. As
they passed another set of eyes, he glanced at Kayos.

"Who created
these areas?"

"Grey Gods, a
long time ago, before we discovered how to construct domains we
could seal off from the God Realm and its dangers. Most have become
corrupted now, like this one. I have no doubt that this was a
beautiful place when it was created."

"And the
beasts?"

Kayos glanced
at the glowing eyes and shrugged. "Probably escaped from a
collapsed domain, or maybe the warped descendants of whatever
beasts the god who created this forest placed here."

"And these,
like the jarawok, would feed on mortal travellers?"

"Yes, unless
they are spirit beasts, who need nothing but the dark power. But
even they would attack and slay mortal travellers, who generally do
not survive for long in the God Realm unless they find another
domain and gain entry."

"Have you
encountered any?"

"A few."

"Did you help
them?"

Kayos smiled.
"If they were worshippers of the light."

The forest
lightened, the trees becoming smaller until they were stunted,
twisted shadows in a thick, damp grey mist. The snow stopped, and
the ground became stony. A distant howl came from the misty land,
reminding Bane of the dark creatures in the Overworld. He glanced
at Kayos, who gazed in the direction whence the sound had come, his
eyes narrowed. Bane sensed his apprehension and turned his head to
stare into the mist.

Kayos stopped
and murmured, "Make a shield. Be quick. That which approaches is a
beast god, and I do not think it is friendly."

Bane's brows
rose. "Why not flee?"

"It will
follow."

The Demon Lord
spread his hands, and a black shield shimmered into being before
them, its ebon substance shot with sparkles of red. Kayos eyed it
critically.

"You have no
skill."

Bane shot him
a startled glance. "I used one like this to keep Arkonen from
killing me. It served its purpose."

"It is crude,
a mere instinctive creation, borne out of your need for protection
when you fought him. You have much to learn."

The shield
wavered and thinned as soon as Bane stopped concentrating on it,
and Kayos shook his head.

"That would
not even keep a mortal at bay."

Bane renewed
his concentration, and the shield thickened and darkened, swirling
with red sparks. As soon as he glanced into the mist again,
however, the shield wavered.

"Keep it in a
part of your mind. Hold it there," the Elder God instructed.

Bane focussed
on the shield again, strengthening it, then tried to put that part
of his thought aside without letting it fade. When he glanced away
again, it wavered, but did not thin.

"Better,"
Kayos murmured. "Strengthen your thought."

Bane did so
without looking at the shield this time, sensing it becoming solid
once more.

"Good," Kayos
said. "Now form one in front of us, from the ground."

Bane drew the
shield back into himself, then caused a wall of shadow to arise
before him. It wavered, becoming translucent, and he frowned,
willing it to thicken and solidify. Again he put the thought that
had formed it aside, but held it in a part of his mind. When he
glanced away, the shield shimmered and thinned, and he increased
the power of the encapsulated thought until it grew solid once
more.

"So where is
this beast god?" he asked.

"It
comes."

A few moments
later, the ground beyond Bane's shield changed as a path formed in
it at right angles to their own, the trees on either side of it
vanishing. A soft rasping and clicking became audible, like claws
and scales dragging on the hard ground. It made Bane's hackles
rise, and he glanced along the new path in the direction of the
sound. A huge dark shape emerged from the mist with slow, measured
steps. Its wedge-shaped head swung to and fro on a long, sinuous
neck attached to a bulky body with vast webbed wings folded on its
back. A line of spikes ran down its spine, and its short, powerful
legs ended in three-clawed feet. Mottled red and black scales
covered its back and flanks, with yellowish spots on its belly, and
red eyes glowed in the ridged, horned head. Its baleful gaze swept
over Bane, filled with malevolent intelligence and hatred.

"Concentrate,"
Kayos muttered.

Bane focussed
on his wavering shield, thickening it to solidity again.

"Make it
bigger," Kayos instructed.

Bane increased
the power he fed the shield, making broader and taller, its
substance solid black, shot with brilliant sparks of red.

Kayos glanced
at the young dark god, impressed. Seldom had he seen the black so
thick with redness, an indication of immense strength, and only
three runes glowed on Bane's chest. The Grey God turned his
attention to the beast god, whose eyes raked them, lingering on the
shield. It hissed, a sibilant, threatening sound, but showed no
sign of slowing its ponderous progress. He was certain it had never
encountered light and dark human gods working together before, and
wondered at it. It turned its head away as it moved beyond them and
continued down its path. When the mist had swallowed it, he looked
at Bane.

"Very good. It
was suitably impressed."

The shield
shimmered and shrank to nothing as Bane turned to him, frowning. "I
assume that is why it did nothing?"

"Correct."

"Otherwise it
would have attacked you?"

"Both of us.
It has no respect for other dark gods, unless they are powerful
enough to deter it."

Bane gazed
after the beast. "Ugly thing. I would have thought a beast god
would be beautiful, as some mortal beasts are."

"Spirit gods
choose their own appearance. I created the beasts of the Overworld,
so I decided what they should look like."

Bane grunted
and glanced back at Mirra, who stared after the beast god, pale and
wide-eyed. Grem and Mithran looked similarly awestruck, but hid it
better. She cast him a wan smile when she noticed his attention,
and he returned it, wondering if she regretted her wish to come on
this adventure yet. Certainly she appeared to be tired and scared,
and he was torn between vindication of his warnings and regret that
she had come. He could have been relaxing in his cabin with a good
hot meal now, or fishing in the lake, instead of trudging through
this hostile place. With a sigh, he followed Kayos when the Grey
God headed down the path once more.

There was no
way to measure time in the God Realm, so they walked until Bane's
legs ached or the trio's stomachs rumbled, the only indications
that time had passed. The terrain changed at irregular intervals,
sometimes abruptly, other times slowly, into weird landscapes or
surreal environments. At times he and Kayos talked, but for the
most part they walked in silence, their senses alert for danger.
Bane noticed an unusual lack of questions or comments from the
three who followed aboard the demon steeds, which he attributed to
the presence of the Grey God.

Chapter Seven

Blue Mage

Bane gazed
across the vast, flat red desert that baked beneath a glowing
orange sky. The heat was so intense he had to shield himself and
the trio, and he had decided it was one of the more unpleasant
landscapes they had encountered. The endless walking had long since
become tedious and tiring, and this area looked particularly
endless. More and more, he was tempted to summon a demon steed for
himself, or share Kess with Mirra. Pride kept him walking at the
Grey God's side. At least, that was what he called it. Mirra and
Mithran called it stubbornness, and Grem refused to take sides.
Bane's aching feet agreed with Mirra's urging to ride with her, and
he wished Kayos would summon something to ride so he could too. As
Kayos had pointed out, however, it was not a competition, yet Bane
still walked.

Kayos stopped
and created an Eye with a wave of his hand, interrupting Bane's
reverie. He stepped behind the Grey God to peer over his shoulder,
evincing a sidelong glance from Kayos, who clearly disliked having
a dark god breathing down his neck. He hid his discomfort well, for
Bane deduced it was considerably deeper than he let on. In the Eye,
a strange heap lay on the red sand some distance ahead.

"A mortal,"
Kayos murmured. "Still alive."

Bane frowned
at the distance speck. "Could it be a trap?"

"No. The God
Realm is too trackless to lay traps with living mortals as bait.
There are many traps, but they are well concealed, and wait
undiscovered for aeons before someone is unfortunate enough to step
into them. This is just a hapless traveller the heat has brought
low."

Kayos
dismissed the Eye and walked on, Bane trudging after him, almost
ready for another rest stop. The area was neutral, and no blue aura
surrounded Bane, while Kayos had only the faint silver one he
always possessed. When they reached the crumpled form, Kayos bent
to study it.

"It is a
woman."

Bane created a
seat and settled on it with a sigh, flexing his feet. Kayos
expanded his shields to protect the unconscious woman, who lay face
down on the burning sand. Mirra, Grem and Mithran dismounted,
rubbed their posteriors and stretched. The two men watched the Grey
God, while Mirra came over to sit on Bane's knee. Kayos rolled the
woman onto her back, healing her with his touch, then conjured a
flask of water and held it to her lips. She wore snug-fitting
leggings under a long-sleeved, white velvet tunic that hung to
mid-thigh, her feet shod in sturdy brown leather boots.

Tangled dark
brown hair framed a strong boned face with regular features and a
generous mouth, and her tawny skin was streaked with dirt and
sweat. Blue tattoos edged her hairline and ran down the centre of
her forehead in a wavy line of tiny symbols. They continued down
her neck and vanished beneath her clothes, to reappear on her hands
in a series of intricate patterns that adorned each finger to its
tip. Kayos indicated them with flick of his fingers.

"A blue mage.
That is how she has survived for so long. The nearest domain is far
from here."

Bane conjured
a cup of ambrosia and sipped it. At least the woman had forced the
Grey God to stop before Bane had to ask him to, and he hoped she
would keep Kayos busy for a while. Other than that, he did not
really care who or what she was, or why she was in the God Realm.
Kayos trickled water into the woman's mouth until she swallowed,
coughed and gasped. He persisted, and after a few minutes she
gulped the water, taking hold of the flask with shaking hands. When
she had drunk a fair bit, he pulled the flask away, foiling her
feeble attempts to hang on to it. Her eyes opened, flicked over his
face, and widened, her expression becoming awe stricken.

"Lord," she
whispered. "You answered my prayers. Thank you."

Kayos shook
his head. "I heard no prayers, child. Unless you speak my name, I
cannot. Do you know my name?"

"No,
Lord."

"Then to whom
did you pray?"

"Anyone."

Kayos smiled.
"Then no one heard it."

"But you came.
Thank you."

"A lucky
chance. You lay in my path."

She became
agitated, her expression changing from worshipful awe to anguished
desperation. "Please, Lord, my goddess needs your help."

"Hush. Drink.
You are weak."

"Yes,
Lord."

Kayos helped
her to sit up, and her colour improved as she sucked the water
down, her dark brown eyes losing their glassy look. Again he took
the flask away before the water made her sick, and she gazed at him
with mingled adoration and anguished hope.