Demon Lord V - God Realm (18 page)

"Well he looks
pretty much like the rest of us, so there's no need for them to
hang around, is there?"

She smiled,
revealing her long canines again. "Oh, he doesn't look like you,
soldier. Not in the least."

"Maybe not,
but -"

"Hey," Sarrin
interrupted. "Hold the splints steady, missy."

The cat woman
turned her attention back to her chore. "My name is Kimi."

"I am Sarrin,
now can we get this done before he wakes up?"

Kimi nodded
and held the splints in place while Sarrin wound the bandage around
Bane's arm until it was firmly bound. Local women had tended the
rest of the injured, and most were being helped from the room.
Sarrin stood up and turned to Artan.

"Let us get
him up to the room."

Artan nodded,
and with the aid of Mithran, Juvo and the soldier, they carried him
upstairs and laid him on the bed beside Mirra. Sarrin turned to
find that Kimi had followed them, and raised her brows at the
woman.

"I'll help
you," the cat woman volunteered.

"Why?"

"I wish to
earn his favour."

Artan frowned
at her. "Why?"

"I want to
leave this place."

Sarrin turned
to Artan. "We could use her, and Bane did not object to her
downstairs."

"It's up to
Bane," Grem stated, drawing all eyes to him.

Kimi nodded.
"Of course."

Sarrin glanced
at Juvo and the soldiers, who stood in a muttering group, taking
stock of their injuries. One of the soldiers had a nasty cut on his
arm, and tried to stem the bleeding with a torn shirt. "Well, Kimi,
we need more bandages, if you could find us some."

Kimi nodded
again and left, returning a short while later with bandages and a
pottery jug. Artan took the bandages and went to tend to the
injured soldier, and Kimi held the jug out to Sarrin.

"It's a potion
for pain."

Sarrin took it
and sniffed its contents. "When we asked for herbs before, we could
not get any."

"Our lord has
provided for the wounded."

Artan looked
up from his chore and snorted. "Big of him. You really expect us to
feed that to Bane?"

"It's not
poison. Our lord may be playful, but he's not evil."

"Playful!"
Artan glared at her. "He's bloody mad."

Kimi shook her
head. "He's a child."

"He just got a
bunch of your people killed down there."

"He knew that
your god would help us."

"And now he's
injured."

Kimi bowed her
head. "I'm certain he regrets that."

"And I'm sure
he doesn't."

Sarrin raised
a hand. "Let us not fight about it. If it makes you happy, Artan,
let Kimi test the potion."

"You trust
her?"

"Not
entirely."

Kimi took the
jug and drank from it, then handed it back to Sarrin. Artan snorted
again and went back to bandaging the soldier's arm. When he was
finished, he sat with them and eyed Kimi, who moved to the furthest
corner of the room and settled there. Sarrin sank down on the chair
beside the bed and gazed at Bane, recalling the events that had
taken place downstairs when the beast had arrived. She had been in
the kitchen when the outer doors of the common room had swung open
to admit the monster, already harried by a number of the local
fighters. The people who had been seated at the tables had jumped
up in alarm, and the serving girl who had been carrying a tray from
the kitchen dropped it and screamed. Clearly Frendar had lured the
beast into the building, and she wondered what else the child god
had in store for them.

Chapter Nine

Child God

Kayos smashed
aside a crumbling earth demon's fist, and it sank into a pile of
foul soil, vanquished. Nine such piles surrounded the Grey God now,
and four of the fire demons were gone. Lines of molten rock scored
the stone beneath his feet, where fire demons' eyes had swept past,
seeking him. Only once had the blow of an earth demon staggered
him, the rest he had countered easily. He swept his shield through
a fire demon, and the fiend vanished in an orange blaze, leaving a
foul stench. The demons were almost exhausted now, and becoming
easy to defeat.

"Leave him!"
Torvaran's deep voice lashed the demons, and they retreated. The
dark god approached his foe, grinning. "Have you been enjoying
yourself, old one?"

Kayos
shrugged. "It has been vaguely entertaining."

Torvaran
glanced at the piles of earth. "You have done well. Tired yet?"

"When I get
tired, I will let you know."

"And cower
inside your shields."

"That will be
frustrating for you, will it not?"

Torvaran
chuckled. "I will rip apart your shields and destroy you."

"You will
try."

"No, I shall
succeed. Many have tried that tactic, as you cowardly light ones
are apt to do. They all perished. The last one I killed tried it,
but when he realised that I was going to break his shields, he
Moved, and the chase was on again. It did not take me long to find
him, and when I did, he tried to put shackles on me." Torvaran
laughed. "He was a fool, and if you try to hide in your shields, so
are you."

"Do you really
expect me to believe anything you say?"

"No, and that
is why you, too, will die, old one."

Kayos kept his
expression neutral, but he wondered if Torvaran was telling the
truth. Legends existed of dark gods who had learnt to open a light
god's shields, although he was unsure how. If Torvaran was one
such, retreating into his shields was the worst thing he could do,
but he could not fight forever. There was also a good chance that
Torvaran was lying in order to force him to fight. If he was
telling the truth, and he could open Kayos' shields, it would
compel the Grey God to Move, and in the God Realm, he could end up
anywhere. Torvaran would instantly follow, and if Kayos landed in a
dark region, he was doomed.

Sarrin looked
up as Bane groaned and fingered his cheek, where a dark bruise
formed. She glanced at Kimi, who lifted her head from her arms to
stare at Bane with deep trepidation, mixed with hope. Bane lowered
his hand to the bandages on his left arm, examining them with long
slender fingers that caressed the soft cloth like a lover's touch,
making her shiver at the unbidden images her mind conjured up.

The bandages
shimmered and turned to stone, and her eyes widened in amazement.
She looked away, nauseated by the realisation that he could do that
to anything or anyone, if he wished. Putting the horrible thought
aside, she wondered why anything Bane did surprised her anymore.
Naturally stone would give better support than wooden splints and
bandages. She rose, poured a cup of Kimi's potion and sat on the
bed beside him.

"I have
something for the pain. Can you sit up?"

He turned his
head towards her. "So that little bastard relented?"

"He provided
for the injured."

Bane sat up
with a hiss of pain, cradling his arm, and held out his hand. She
placed the cup in it, and he sniffed its contents. "Big of
him."

"It is
safe."

"Who is the
stranger?"

Sarrin's brows
shot up in surprise. "How do you know?"

"I can see
souls."

She stared at
him, stunned again by this amazing revelation, then gave herself a
mental shake. "Her name is Kimi, and she wants to help, in return
for passage out of here."

Bane sipped
the potion and grimaced. "Fine. Why does this stuff always taste
like fermented cow dung?"

"You do not
wish to question her?"

"About what?
She is untainted, which is more than I can say for Frendar."

Sarrin
frowned. "How can a light god be tainted?"

"Easily. Take
a normal everyday human, or worse, a child, make him omnipotent,
and see how quickly he becomes a monster."

"But I thought
only the dark power corrupts."

"That, or
ultimate power. For one who is not born a god, the temptation to
use it to relieve their boredom is usually too much to resist. I
have known that temptation, but only when the dark power influences
me." Bane finished the potion, pulled a face, and held the cup out
for Sarrin to take before lying down again.

"I suppose his
deeds speak for themselves. Have you any other injuries, My
Lord?"

"Nothing
serious."

"Even a minor
injury can become a problem if not treated."

He sighed. "I
twisted my ankle, that is all."

Sarrin put the
cup on the table and moved to the end of the bed, where she unlaced
his boots. When she removed the right one, she found that his ankle
was swollen, and probed it, making him hiss and frown.

"It is not
broken, just sprained."

"I may not be
a stranger to pain, Sarrin, but I would appreciate it if you did
not poke me like a slab of meat."

"I am sorry,
Lord; I had to find out how bad it was." Sarrin turned to Kimi. "We
need more bandages."

The cat woman
nodded and left. A few minutes later, Artan rose and went over to
Ethra, squatting beside her cot. He glanced at Sarrin with a grin
as she hunkered down beside him, taking Ethra's hand. The girl
gazed at them with dazed eyes.

"What
happened?"

"We were
attacked by vampires, but Bane saved us."

Artan jumped
up and fetched a cup of water, raised Ethra's head and pressed it
to her lips. She swallowed some, coughing. "Is he all right?"

Sarrin
hesitated. "He will be fine."

Ethra's eyes
filled with dread. "What's wrong with him?"

"He is all
right, do not worry."

"I want to see
him."

"No, lie down,
you are still weak."

Ethra
struggled to sit up. "Let me see him."

Realising that
the girl was not going to be gainsaid, Sarrin helped her to her
feet. She stared at Bane, leaning on the priestess as she moved
closer to him.

"No." Her face
twisted. "Not his eyes."

"Ethra." Bane
held out his hand, and she took it and clasped it to her cheek.
Sarrin shivered, recalling the stone bandages.

Ethra gazed at
him with anguished eyes. "Are you blind?"

"For the
moment. I am glad you are better. Lie down now."

"You have to
get better!" she wailed.

"That is my
fondest wish too."

Tears ran down
her cheeks, wetting his hand, and he sighed. "Go and lie down now,
regain your strength."

Ethra sagged,
her face twisted with grief, and Sarrin helped her back to her
bunk. Kimi appeared in the doorway, clutching a roll of bandages,
and Sarrin looked up at her.

"Now we need a
bowl of broth, Kimi."

The cat woman
handed her the bandages, then left again on her new errand. Sarrin
bound Bane's ankle, trying to be gentle. Kimi returned, and Artan
took the bowl, holding it while Ethra spooned its thick meaty
contents with shaking hands. Bane turned his head toward Kimi, who
sat in the corner again, trying to be unobtrusive.

"Come here,
Kimi."

The cat woman
hesitated, glancing at Sarrin, who cast her a reassuring smile.
Kimi approached the bed, and Bane lifted his hand, making a gesture
and murmuring a soft word.

"Are there any
others who wish to leave, and would be willing to help?"

"Perhaps. I
don't know."

"Could you
find out?"

"I - I could,
but Lord Frendar would be angry."

Bane nodded.
"Yes, I imagine he will."

"He'll punish
me."

"If you want
to help us, you will have to do more than fetch and carry. I may
ask you to do dangerous things. I will also try to protect you.
Will you do it?"

Kimi glanced
at Sarrin again, and then nodded. "If you wish."

"I do."

She turned and
left the room, her shoulders hunched.

Sarrin shot
Bane a worried look. "What will he do to her?"

"That depends
on how angry he is, and how malicious. He will not kill her."

Sarrin tugged
the bandage tight, making him wince. "Why the hurry to leave? We
have shelter and food here while you recover."

"Because
Frendar does not want us to leave. We are his newest toys, and
therefore his most cherished. He will keep arranging accidents to
make sure that we stay. Although he could not have sent the
vampires, he certainly caused that fracas downstairs. He made me
fall from the stairs, for his own amusement, no doubt, but also to
injure me. Next time he might choose one of you, but he will
concentrate his efforts on me, I think."

"Have you
silenced this room now, Lord?"

"Yes."

Sarrin tied
the bandage and turned to him. "If you took up the dark power
-"

"No."

She studied
him, noting the faint sheen of sweat on his brow. "What would
happen if you did?"

A faint, wry
smile curled his lips. "He certainly would not want me to stay
then. But Morwanor would find out, and he would not be able to
resist killing an injured dark god."

"Yet he will
allow an injured blue god to live?"

"Yes. A blue
god is beneath his notice, and, although he may do it for sport, it
is not a challenge."

Sarrin glanced
around as a flash of light came from the doorway. A small child
stood there, scowling at them. Golden curls framed his cherubic
face, and bright blue eyes glared above a snub nose sprinkled with
freckles. He wore a light god's traditional grey garb, and his
lower lip protruded in a pout. Sarrin stepped back with a gasp, and
the men jumped up, their eyes wide.

"I want to
hear what you say!" Frendar shouted in a childish treble.

"Hello,
Frendar," Bane murmured.

The child god
marched closer. "Take off your spell!"