Shadowed by Demons, Book 3 of the Death Wizard Chronicles (41 page)

“I don’t
 . . .
understand,” Lucius said. “Why are you showing me this? Shouldn’t we go back and warn the others? Something this dangerous could harm even the Daasa.”

“What makes you so sure the Daasa didn’t do this? You’ve seen what they’re capable of. Yet it did not even enter your mind?”

He slapped his forehead with the palm of his hand. “You’re right, you’re right
 . . .
of course it was them. When they saw the Tyger, they must have transformed and killed it.”

Jord shook her head. “Your first inclination was correct, firstborn. It was not the Daasa. Do you not remember?”

“Remember what? This?”

Jord did not answer, but her eyes glowed green. She walked over to the broken tree and pulled something off it
 . . .
a torn piece of cloth.

“Do you not remember?” she repeated.

There
was
something; he couldn’t deny it. He was running. Feeling lost. And then pain. And a blazing rage.

Jord placed her hand on his shoulder, startling him. “You were born of the Daasa. Their flesh is your flesh. Their way is your way.”

“I don’t know what you mean.”

“I think you do.”

Lucius backed away from her
 . . .
slowly.

“Listen, nothing like
this
has happened before. I’ve been angry many times in my life. And afraid, too. If you’re saying what I think you’re saying
 . . .
why now?”

“The
Mahanta pEpa
no longer exists,” Jord explained. “But even that is not the true reason it has taken so long for your first transformation. That being’s power had little effect on you. Instead, it is your recent proximity to so many of the Daasa that has awakened a part of you that before had lain dormant.”

Lucius became so dizzy, it was a struggle to stay on his feet. “Then
 . . .
I’m a monster?”

“You were born of the Daasa
 . . .
a creation of great magic. Are you a monster or a miracle? That will be for you to decide.”

Lucius lowered his head. Tears fell from his eyes. “What about Bonny? She’s falling in love with me
 . . .
and I with her. What will she do when she finds out about
 . . .
this?”

“She already knows. She saw.”

“She
saw
?”

Jord nodded.

“She saw me
change
?”

Jord continued to nod.

“And she wasn’t sickened?”

“Do not underestimate her. She is strong. There is a reason she has grown to love you so quickly. For you see, she is also not fully human.”

Lucius’ jaw dropped. He could think of nothing else to say.

Jord smiled compassionately. “This is enough for one night. We all have endured sorrows. The mountain eagles are dead. What could be worse than that? Return with me to the cabin and sleep without fear. Over the coming days, there’ll be plenty of time to talk—for I will be with you. At least for a time. If it is within my power, I will see you safely to Jivita.”

THE MORNING after his transformation, Lucius still wasn’t hungry. While Bonny and the others gorged on deer meat, blackberries, white cheese, and brown bread, Lucius wandered back into the woods to study the destruction in daylight.

The Daasa followed him, almost ten thousand in all, squealing and leaping about excitedly in his presence. Lucius ignored them, concentrating on the task ahead. The carcass of the Tyger had been dragged away, presumably by something large. Another Tyger? A bear? One of his own Daasa?

Lucius walked over to the trunk of the tree that had been split in two. How much strength would it take to perform such a feat? Far more than he contained. Or believed he contained. Now he was no longer sure. If Jord’s assertions were correct, a beast lurked within him that could knock down trees and kill Tygers with its bare hands. If so, he really was like the Daasa. The thought filled him with horror—but a part of him was tantalized. While living in Avici, he had been pushed around far too often. Did the monster within give him powers that would enable him to seek revenge?

When he returned to the cabin, Bonny ran out to greet him, her face flushed with pleasure. When she tried to hug him, Lucius looked at her distrustfully and nudged her away.

“What?” Hurt echoed in her voice.

“What? All you have to say is ‘what’? After what happened to me last night?”

“Oh
 . . .
that.”

Lucius felt an urge to slap her. How dare she act so nonchalant. His world had been forever changed, yet she barely seemed to care. “It’s obvious
I’m
not human,” he said, his voice mean-spirited. “But Jord mentioned something about you. What have you been hiding from me?”

Now it was Bonny’s turn to get angry. “I wasn’t hiding anything. I was just waiting for the right time to tell you. I didn’t want to scare you away, until you knew more about your own self. Now that I see how mean you can be, I wish I had scared you away.”

“Tell me
what
?”

“It’s not such a big deal, you know
 . . .
”

“
What
isn’t? Tell me
now.
”

“All right, I’ll tell you, though I’d prefer it if you asked more nicely. The truth is my mommy was a pirate
 . . .
but my daddy was a newborn just like you. There, are you happy? Oh, and one other thing: I can change into a monster anytime I like. I don’t even have to get mad.

“It’s why Rakkhati and the Jivitans found me so
valuable
in Duccarita. When I’m that way, I can fight real good. The scar I showed you on my tummy back at the tavern? A cave troll got a slice of me with his axe. Afterward, I killed him myself with a bite to the neck. And I enjoyed it. So you can see now why I didn’t get all scared when you changed last night. Sorry to disappoint you.”

“You could have saved us when the Porisāda attacked us in the alley.”

“Maybe. I was tempted to try. Instead, I called the Daasa.”

“You called? I didn’t hear anything.”

“I spoke with my mind, just like you did when they came to you in the open square.”

“I’m not like you,” Lucius said, backing away.

“That’s true,” Bonny said. “Half of me is human, while you are a purebred, which makes you even stronger. That’s why the Daasa follow you. They love you. As do I—if you will let me. Who could make you a better wife than me?”

LUCIUS CALLED everyone together later that afternoon. It had become a beautiful day, breezy and warm. They sat facing each other on a pair of fallen logs, the firstborn and the Faerie on one side, Ugga, Bard, and Bonny on the other. The pirate woman sat with her pretty face buried in her hands. All around them were the Daasa, looking silly and pleased.

“I need to talk to the four of you, not as a leader, but as a friend,” Lucius finally said. At the sound of his voice, many of the Daasa chittered. “We have decisions to make, and we need to make them soon. Our plan all along has been to go with the Daasa to Jivita, and Jord now tells me that she will accompany us. Still, as I’ve said before, I have no desire to force any of you to follow me. You are free to go elsewhere, without feeling shame or betrayal.”

Bonny looked up sharply, her eyes red and puffy. “How can you even ask? You know full well we’re all going with you—any of us who are welcome, at least.”

Lucius sighed, then looked at the crossbreed and his companion. “Do the rest of you agree?”

Ugga and Bard smiled. Lucius was stunned to see how young they looked again. Their recent sprouts of gray hair were gone, and they held their backs erect. Had Jord’s presence rejuvenated them?

“Of course we will go with ya, Master Loo-shus,” Ugga said. “Me, Bard, and Miss Bonny are going to help ya fight the war. Jord says that’s what we’re supposed to do, but we’d have done it even without her saying it.”

“All right, that’s settled. My next question, then, is to Jord.”

Lucius turned and gazed at her. The first time he had seen her by the cabin, she was dressed in a glowing white gown that had been perfect to the point of surrealism, but now she wore an ordinary-looking green coat, baggy brown trousers, and a brown shawl that concealed her hair. She had supplied similar clothing for Lucius and the others, including brown leather boots. They continued to look more like Duccaritans than Jivitans, but these new outfits would be comfortable in most any temperature. Though it was becoming unseasonably hot during the day, it still was chilly at night, especially this far north, only a few leagues from the Gap of Gamana.

“I am at your service,” the Faerie said. “What do you want to know?”

“I want to know
everything
,” Lucius said, chuckling. “But I’ll settle for a few things. For instance, are our other companions still alive?”

“That’s a good question, Master Loo-shus!” Ugga said.

“I don’t know how they fare,” Jord said sincerely. “But I believe at least some of them will make it to Jivita.”

“Some
 . . .
but not all?”

“That’s up to fate,” the Faerie said with a shrug of her slim shoulders. “What are your other questions?”

“I has one,” Ugga said. “Can the meanie Daasa beat up In-vick-tuss?”

All of them laughed, even Bonny.

“We shall see what we shall see,” Jord said.

“And the druids?” Bonny said. “Where are they now? When will they attack Jivita? And will some of them come after us?”

“Those were my next questions,” Lucius said, smiling at Bonny. In response, the pain in her face seemed to melt away.

“But I have no answers,” Jord said. “I have been with the four of you since yesterday afternoon—and I was waiting for you even longer than that.”

“Ya could turn into a big birdie and look around,” Bard said hopefully. “We knows ya can do it.”

“For the time being, my place is with you and the Daasa,” Jord said.

Lucius sighed again. “I’m unsure whether the druids consider us enough of a threat to even bother to attack, but our plan still should be to continue south and reach Jivita as quickly as possible. Bonny believes it will take at least two weeks—and that’s if we do not encounter unusual difficulties along the way. Traveling with the Daasa is like marching with a slow-moving army. We’ll be lucky to average six leagues a day—and we have almost eighty to go.”

“Two weeks will be soon enough,” Jord said. “And when we arrive, Jivita will be the better for it.”