Queen of the Dark Things (31 page)

“No one knows but Mandu.”

“Well, if this is Bune's curse, why don't you just have him remove it?”

Orobas stamped a hoof on the ground and pointed to Colby. “Good thinking. But he can't.”

“Why not?”

“Two reasons. One, a curse is just a bargain struck without benefits. Bune set the rules of the curse, and now he cannot renege on them. He set the rules of the kutjis' existence, and now it has to play out to its last. And two, Bune is missing.”

“He's one of the five miss . . .” Colby trailed off. “The five. Your missing five demons. They're—”

“The five dukes of the
Batavia
.”

“She's trying to unmake her curse.”

“I told you, she can't. The five dukes, no matter how involved they are in her . . .
situation . . .
they cannot unmake what they have made. And she knows that.”

“So this is revenge,” said Colby.

Orobas nodded, his mane bouncing behind him. “This is revenge.”

“She's binding them to pay for their part in having bound her?”

“Yes.”

“I'm not seeing my part in this.”

“The part where the girl whose cord you cut and left in the desert with a horde of shadows has begun amassing an army of the damned, meting out revenge on those she feels have wronged her?”

“You just said Mandu—”

“Does she know that? Does she even care? She's been out there in that desert for ten years, wandering without a body, unable to go home. Never sleeping, never eating. Consumed only by rage at her own confinement. We'd heard of the terrible things she was doing, the rounding up of the spirits of dreamtime. But we had no idea it would lead to this.”

“How did she even summon a demon to begin with? I mean, if you know—”

“Dantalion was the first to go. She didn't summon Dantalion. She found him.”

“Found him? How do you
find
a demon?”

“Weema's Rock,” said Yashar. Again Orobas nodded.

“I don't understand,” said Colby.

“Dantalion is a djinn,” said Yashar. “The Thousand-faced Djinn. He can look like anyone. Put thoughts in the heads of men. Can inspire love even between the worst enemies. But he's still a djinn. And powerful though he is, he still has to sleep. Weema's Rock. You've been there.”

“The place where we met Mandu? And you . . . oooooh.”

“It's in the middle of the desert, far from any songline. No one goes out there. You can sleep for years without ever being disturbed. Only a precious few Clever Men know of its existence—the ones we trust to watch over us while we sleep.”

“Oh my God. Mandu told her. I remember now. He pointed out to the desert, described it, and told her that one day she would . . .”

“She would what?” asked Yashar.

“Find her destiny. She was always going on about some destiny. Wouldn't stop talking about it. There was something great in her future that she couldn't wait to get to.”

“Destiny is a thing crafted by spirits but chosen by men,” said Orobas. “It may have been born in the will of others, but she has chosen the path set before her.”

“You're the great oracle. So what's her destiny?”

“I don't know.”

“What do you mean you don't know? You have to know. It's the one thing you do.”

“We can no longer see her future. Just as we can no longer see yours. That's how we know that you're involved.”

“You can't see my destiny?”

“No. Your future has become . . . uncertain.”

“Because this involves you?”

“Because it involves the Seventy-two.”

“How did she even bind a demon, anyway? She shouldn't have that power.”

Yashar shook his head, waving a dismissive hand. “There are dozens of ways to bind spirits, Colby. You know that. Bottles, sacred objects, permanent triangles and pentagrams. Even I know how to trap a demon. I just know better not to try.”

“But to summon and bind five?” asked Colby. “There's got to be something more to it. Someone has to be helping her.”

“It would appear not,” said Orobas. “She is doing this entirely on her own.”

“On her own with an army of spirits.”

“Yes. But none that could do
this
.”

“Okay, but what I still don't understand is why you all don't just get together and form some super-demon assault force of doom and just rain on Australia like it was fucking Judgment Day. Binding one demon is a terrifying enough proposition. But sixty-seven? There's no way. She's not that powerful. She can't be.”

“We just . . . can't.”

“You just . . . ca—” Colby broke off his mockery, the color in his face draining, leaving him a pale, ghostly white. “Oh my God. She found the ring.”

Orobas didn't answer, instead looking away, across the bar, his expression strained.

“Kaycee found the ring, didn't she?”

Orobas looked back at Colby, nodding bitterly. “Yes. She has the ring.”

C
HAPTER
42

S
OLOMON
THE
W
ANDERER

A
N
EXCERPT
BY
J
ONATHON
W
ALTERS
FROM
HIS
BOOK
A
BANDONED
R
ELIGION
: S
TORIES
AND
E
PICS
OF
THE
O
LD
W
ORLD

W
hile there is no empirical evidence of his existence, King Solomon is mostly considered an historical figure rather than a religious one. No artifacts remain from his reign, nor is he mentioned in historical documents of any kind. And yet, he is a pivotal figure in most of the major religions, assumed to be, at least in part, based upon an historical one. That said, the beliefs surrounding him differ from religion to religion. While it is generally accepted that he was gifted with almost supernatural wisdom, many of the stories revolving around him involve his suffering at the hands of his own foolish decisions. Meanwhile, other stories hail him as a demon summoner, only able to overcome their trickery by God's intervention. In the strangest tale, Solomon is gifted with a powerful ring that both gives him great power and sends him on a most unlikely adventure.

Just after the death of David, King Solomon found himself ruler of a wealthy and growing kingdom. While David's rule had been great, his son sought to move quickly out of the shadow of his father. He commissioned the building of the largest temple the world had ever seen, but its construction proved problematic. Surrounding his kingdom were stones of marble that shone bright pink in the sun. But the Torah forbade the use of iron cutting tools, iron being considered the unholy alloy of the Devil. So he tasked, at great expense, every available man in the kingdom to its completion, including his own young concubines.

One, a young boy, soon fell ill while working on it. When Solomon saw the boy so thin and pale he asked of him, “Do I not give you twice the pay and food of any other man? Why are you so thin and sickly?”

And the boy answered, with shame in his eyes, “My king, you would not believe me if I told you.”

“You are my most favored and I trust you with all my heart. Tell me what is wrong with you and I will not be angry.”

“My king, at night, while asleep, a demon visits me and sucks at my thumb. He steals half my pay, half my food, and each night half my remaining life.”

Solomon, love him though he did, was not sure whether to believe the boy. So that night he crept into the boy's chambers and waited in hiding. To his surprise, in the darkest hour of the night, appeared Ornias, a lesser demon, who stole the boy's rations and wages before suckling his thumb.

Unsure of what to do about the demon, Solomon fell to his knees in the temple and prayed that God give him the means to protect the boy. It was then that the Archangel Gabriel appeared before him, throwing a ring before Solomon's feet. Gabriel instructed him to cast the ring at the demon and that the symbol upon it would burn a brand in its flesh. Any demon so branded would have to obey the wearer's every command and could not in any way harm him.

So Solomon waited again and in the darkest hour of the night Ornias again appeared. This time, as he set to suck at the thumb of the boy, Solomon cast the ring as he was commanded, and the ring then burned a glowing brand in the demon's flesh. Solomon put the ring back on, commanding the demon to stop and kneel before him. And thus the demon did.

It was then that Solomon realized the solution to his construction problems. “Tell me,” he said to Ornias, “where I might find the rest of your brothers.”

Ornias shook his head. “I cannot tell you that,” he said. “For I do not know. But I do know where Asmodeus is, and he is the lord of us all. He knows where to find each of us and his word is our law. Find him and find us all.”

“Summon him,” Solomon commanded, and he did.

Asmodeus appeared, moving immediately to smite the king, but Solomon cast his ring at him and burned the brand into his chest. Asmodeus howled in pain, but fell to his knees when commanded.

“Bring to me the demons under your command,” said Solomon, “so that they might build me the greatest temple to God the world has ever seen.” And though he did not want to, Asmodeus began to summon them one by one. Soon Solomon had an army of demons thirty-six strong with which to build his temple.

The demons built it quickly, raising a temple higher than any man knew how, burnished with gold and sculptures of the angels. When it was done, Solomon marveled at the mastery of its craftsmanship. And so he turned to Asmodeus and asked him, “How is it that these demons follow you so loyally? This temple exalts all which they oppose. How could they build so well a temple to the Lord?”

“My powers, my king, are weakened by your ring. Perhaps if you took it off I could show you.”

Solomon consented and took off the ring.

“Hand it here and I will show you why they obey me.”

Solomon handed the ring to Asmodeus, trusting that the demon could not harm him. At once the demon grew in size, one wing touching the earth, the other reaching well into the sky. The demon grabbed Solomon and swallowed him whole. The ring burned in his hand, so he cast it away as far as he could throw it, sinking it deep into the sea. Then he belched out Solomon, hurling him four hundred miles, well out past his kingdom and over several others before dumping him alone in the desert.

King Solomon was shamed, having been fooled by the demon, and set about making his way home, though he knew not which way it was.

Back in Solomon's kingdom, Asmodeus disguised himself as the king, took his place on the throne, and, with his throng of demons, took to slowly corrupting the kingdom. He started small, corrupting officials and tempting the weak willed. Then, as his boldness grew, he convinced the virtuous to throw off their piety, to seek their comforts in prostitutes and profane acts.

Four hundred miles away, Solomon trekked across barren lands and for three years wandered, begging or doing odd jobs to earn his keep until he found himself in the city of Ammon. There, starving and poor, he took the first job he found, as a cook in the king's palace. Solomon quickly showed a talent for cooking and worked his way up to assistant, just beneath the head cook. One night the head cook took ill and Solomon was forced to prepare the meal himself. So pleased was the king with the meal that he immediately promoted Solomon to the position of head cook. And it was then, when he was working directly for the Ammonite king, that he met the king's daughter, Naamah.

Naamah was by far the most beautiful woman in all of Ammon, and said to be more beautiful than anyone in any of the surrounding lands. So beautiful was she that her father kept her from the sight of visiting dignitaries and kings in hopes of saving her for a most beneficial marriage. Only the servants in his palace were allowed to see her, though they were not permitted to speak in her presence. The first moment Solomon laid eyes upon her he was bewitched. Most fortunate for Solomon, the first time she spied him she felt the same.

Every night he served her and every night their hearts pattered faster when the other was near. And after months of suffering in silence, he whispered to her as he set a plate of food before her, “Meet me after sunset.” Later, when sunset came, she snuck down to the kitchen where he had begun roasting the next night's meal. Without a word, they embraced and kissed.

They carried on in secret for weeks until Naamah could bear it no longer. She approached her father with Solomon and asked permission to wed. The Ammonite king was furious, convinced that a commoner had stolen her purity. He ordered her disinherited and cast them both out of the kingdom in disgrace. The two wed at once in the first town they came to and spent the last of their money on a meager meal of small fish.

Naamah insisted on cooking their first meal together for her husband and selected the fish herself. When she sliced open the first fish, a silver ring bearing the seal of Solomon tumbled out. Overjoyed with the sudden windfall, she ran to Solomon and presented the ring to him. “We're rich!” she proclaimed. “We need not worry about starving any longer!”

Solomon smiled at this good fortune, saying unto her, “It is true. We will never have to worry about money.” With that, he put on the ring and they were transported at once back to Israel.

Solomon found his kingdom in disarray. The poor were uncared for. Houses of ill repute advertised their wares in the streets. Temples of worship were empty or defiled. Angered, Solomon stormed into his throne room and saw the demon Asmodeus sitting upon his throne, disguised as him.