A Demon's Child Ch. 04

Saban

Time passed. In a room far from the sun, it was difficult to tell how much. It felt like months, but I wasn't very hungry yet, so it couldn't have been more than three or four days. I slept when I could, taking refuge in unconsciousness.

There was a limit to how much my body would let me sleep, however, so I was awake right now. I sat and stared into the darkness, mind carefully blank. It was a trick I'd learned for hunting other demons. If I dulled my thoughts down to barely a whisper, most demons could not sense my mind, allowing me to ambush them. Right now, it helped me forget my pain.

A soft crackling noise snapped me out of my meditative state. I rose, wondering what the sound was. It was coming from Anita's cage. I peered into the darkness, wishing Thorn had left the lights on. Even a dim glow would be enough for my eyes, but the blackness was absolute. '

Suddenly, a violet radiance flared up, snapping like lightening. It was, I realized, coming from the collar around Anita's neck. Hope grew within me. Could this be...

*

Anita

When I was young, one of my teachers at Rowan had told me that the key to using my power was strength of will. He'd had me immerse myself in an icy pool. I could leave the water any time I liked, and there was no prize for staying. No prize save for self control.

My fellow students had darted into and out of the water, trying, and failing, to endure the biting chill. After a few false starts, I'd sat in the pool, mouth just barely above the surface, until I'd gone numb and the professor had ordered me out.

This was a bit like that. I was hungry, so hungry, and my mouth was bone dry. Exhaustion dulled my thoughts and sapped my will. I wanted to stop, to eat, to sleep, but I couldn't.

No. Not couldn't. I could, if I wanted to. I could end this right now. But I wouldn't. Not until I was done. It shouldn't be much longer now.

My early lessons weren't all about willpower. The taught me to still my emotions, and direct my thoughts. I could twist my mind all sorts of through puzzles and loops, and, just as importantly, I could spend hours very literally thinking of nothing at all.

My mind had been fixed in the same shape for days now. My head ached. I wanted this to be over. Just a bit longer...

There were three parts to what I was attempting. Endurance. Mental control. And, finally, power. My reservoirs of magic were enormous, and they refilled rapidly. I had more raw power at my disposal than any other wizard in the kingdom. That was how I fed Saban, with his voracious appetite for magical energy. And that was how I would free myself now.

The spell disablinging my magic was beginning to give under the steady pressure of my power. I pushed harder. Harder. And then, suddenly, there was nothing to push against. The release of pressure almost made me pass out. I felt the collar crumble to dust.

It was so dark that for a minute I wasn't sure I had opened my eyes. I reached out with my aching mind to brush the light spell. The stones began to glow.

I saw Saban. He was pressed up against the pentagram edge, relief evident in his eyes. "You're okay," he whispered. "You're okay."

I sat up, wincing. "Not exactly. My head kind of hurts."

"But you're... " Saban shook his head. "I never thought I'd see you awake again. I thought you were going to die."

"I still might." I stood and staggered over to the cage door. Leaning against it, I considered the lock. Melting it would be easiest.

"But now we've got a chance. We've got a chance, Anita!" Saban pressed his hands against the barrier. "All you've got to do is release me. Let me out of here, and I'll do the rest."

I glared at the lock, pumping power into it until it glowed cherry red. The loop though the latch stretched, and then broke. The lock fell to the floor, which hissed. Fortunately it was stone. The door swung open, and I almost fell over.

Saban looked worried.

I fought to remain conscious. I was tired, so tired, and my head was sore. All I had to do was make it to the pentagram and deactivate it. That was all I had to do. Then I could pass out all I wanted.

"Come on, Anita," Saban encouraged. "You can do it."

The pentagram was four feet away. Then three. Then two. Then one. Finally, I stood right next to it. Swaying, I reached out with my mind and deactivated it.

The effort made me dizzy. Saban caught me as I fell. "I've got you. Don't worry, I've got you." He slid an arm under my knees and lifted me up. "You can go to sleep now, if you want. I'll take care of everything else."

I wanted to stay conscious for a little bit longer. "Saban?"

His lips brushed my hair. "Yes, love?"

I shifted to look up at him. The intensity of his gaze frightened me. I thought about just going to sleep. We could talk later. But... "You said you loved me."

He smiled. "I do."

I wondered how I had overlooked his feelings before. Now that I knew, it seemed so obvious. "What if I don't love you?"

Now Saban looked nervous. "It's ok if you don't. Just... Just don't dismiss me. Please. It doesn't matter how you feel. I just want to be with you."

"You're sure it doesn't make you angry?" I persisted. "I might never love you."

"As long as you keep me with you, I don't care how you feel about me," Saban reassured.

That kind of devotion was almost as scary as anger. I wondered what I had done to make Saban feel this way. Maybe I should ask him? Later, I decided as my eyes drifted closed. We could talk more later...

*

Saban

Cradled in my arms, Anita's breathing deepened, and her heartbeat slowed. She was asleep. No surprise. I suspected she'd been awake for days, pressing her magic up against the spell blocking it. And she wasn't just sleep deprived. Using her magic continuously for such a long time had damaged the parts of her mind that channeled magic. She'd heal, but, until she did, she'd be sleeping a lot.

I brushed a tentacle over her belly. It was bigger than it had been, evidence of the demonic embryo inside of her. I reached out with my thoughts and brushed that proto-mind. Until it emerged, Anita's magic and life force would get in the way of my controlling it, and after emergence it would be too late.

Thorn's damaged familiar, Wretch, stumbled into the room. He looked at me. "Oh no. Master Thorn won't like-"

Wretch's sniveling was abruptly cut off as I took control of his mind. I reached into his memories, and found the layout of Thorn's hideout. Apparently Thorn had been in his bedroom last time Wretch had seen him. I'd start there.

I looked Wretch over. "What should I do with you?"

In his mind, Wretch was screaming, but, gripped by my thoughts, he was unable to make a sound. Now that he knew my power, he feared me much more than he feared Thorn.

"I could keep you. You might still prove useful," I mused.

I felt Wretch's desperate hope. If he could, he would be groveling at my feet. I contemplated letting him. It felt good to have power.

"Yes, you certainly could be useful." I paused, letting Wretch's hope blossom, and then continued. "Unfortunately for you, I don't care." I gripped Wretch's mind. Twisted. He crumbled to dust.

I stepped over the fine particulate that had been Wretch. Already it was fading away. Hopefully Thorn would be in his bedroom. I'd search the whole place if I had to; I wasn't leaving without my vengeance. However, I'd rather this didn't take all day.

As I strode down the hall, I contemplated what I'd do to Thorn and Vice. I would have liked to keep them both alive for days, months even, but I didn't have time for that. My revenge would have to be quick, but I wanted to make them suffer just as much as I had. The moment after I'd implanted Anita had been the worst in my life, and that was saying something. I didn't exactly have a pleasant history.

When I entered his room, Thorn was having a bath. He jerked out of the water, eyes wide, and Vice dropped the scrubbing brush.

"Hello, Thorn," I said.

He gaped at me. "How...?"

I smiled. "Does it matter?"

Thorn's eyes darted around frantically, but I was between him and the only way out. "Vice," he gasped. "Help me!"

The demoness darted to her feet and started toward me, only to freeze as I took control of her mind. As Thorn began to cast a spell, I had her bind and gag him in her tentacles. Her stricken look as she held her master captive gave me an idea.

I smiled at Thorn. "Now, what am I going to do with you?"

*

Anita

I woke up nestled against Saban's warmth and wrapped in something soft. I considered just going back to sleep, but my rumbling stomach ruled out that idea. I opened my eyes.

Saban was looking down at me. "You're awake. I'm assuming you're hungry."

I nodded. "I certainly-" I caught sight of something out of the corner of my eye. Turning my head, a gruesome sight met my gaze.

There was a body on the floor. Thorn, I decided after a brief examination. He was a bloody, godawful mess. Vice was sitting beside him, knife in hand, weeping.

At first I assumed Thorn was dead. There was no way someone could look like that and still be living. Then I saw his eyes move.

I retched, and spat foul tasting bile onto the floor. When I could speak I gasped, "Gods, Saban. What did you do?"

When Saban replied, there was a certain amount of satisfaction in his voice. "I made him suffer. Vice, too. She wielded the knife."

I retched again, and fought Saban's grip. "Let me go," I ordered.

Saban's hold tightened. "No. You're still too weak."

I hadn't fed Saban for several days. Since my pledge to Saban had specified daily feeding, the familiar bond was weak. I wouldn't be able to command Saban even if my mind were undamaged. Which it wasn't. If I wanted Saban to do something, I'd have to ask nicely.

"Please kill Thorn," I pleaded. "Just kill him and be done with it."

Saban sighed. "As you wish."

Vice slashed the knife across Thorn's throat, and then collapsed, sobbing.

I shuddered. "Her, too. Please."

Saban sighed again, and Vice crumbled to dust. "Is that better?"

"Maybe?" I whispered, closing my eyes. It was no good. The image of Thorn was seared into my mind.

I felt something stroke my hair. "You need to eat," Saban murmured.

I shook my head. "I... I can't. Not after that."

Saban's sigh was warm against the top of my head. "Please, dear one. You need your strength."

"No," I told him. Saban might love me, I thought, but he was still very much a demon. The only thing that held him in check was me. I needed to remember that.

"How about we get you something to wear, and then we talk?" Saban suggested.

I nodded, eyes still closed. "Alright.

Saban didn't regret torturing Thorn, but he certainly seemed to be sorry he'd upset me. He apologized, repeatedly, as he coaxed me to get dressed, and then to eat. After that he got some food together for me to eat as we traveled to Rowan Castle.

I looked at the small supply of journey bread, jerky, and dried fruit Saban had gathered. "That's only about two days worth. Surely we're not that close to Rowan."

"If we were riding," Saban told me, "It wouldn't be enough. We're something like six days out by horseback. But I'm not sure you could stay on a horse in your condition, and, anyways, six days is too slow. We're flying."

I blinked. "Flying? You can fly?"

"I'm a shapeshifter," Saban explained. "It's not that hard to take a shape with wings."

Put like that, it made perfect sense. "Why have you never told me this before?"

Saban grimaced. "Because I hate flying. A shape spread out enough for flight is very vulnerable. It makes me feel uncomfortable."

"But you're willing to do it for me." I said. "That's sweet."

Saban shrugged, looking embarrassed.

"Well, before we leave," I told him, "There's something I need to do."

Saban frowned. "Do we have time?"

"If we had time for what you did to Thorn," I said, "we've got time for this. Can you find Thorn's speaking mirror?"

"Yes," Saban said. "I saw it earlier in his bedroom."

I tried to rise, but fell back into the chair. Saban gave me an annoyed look, and I decided to stay seated. "Can you get it for me?"

Getting the mirror didn't take long. I breathed onto the surface, making it fog. "Marian Dayasauder," I said, fixing the image of my best friend firmly in my mind.

After a few minutes, during which Saban shifted impatiently, Marian answered. She blinked up at me. "Anita? Whose mirror is this?"

The connection was fuzzy. We must be in the middle of a power storm, I thought. Power storms were vortexes of life force caused by the rush of growth in the spring. During the last lunar cycle, when everything was just starting to bud and flower, it was almost impossible to use mirror magic. Right now, there were only a few weak and isolated storms. Unfortunately, we seemed to be right in the middle of one. I needed to make this quick, while the connection lasted.

"We don't have much time," I told Marian. Quickly, I laid out the bare bones of what had happened with Thorn.

"You're a healer," I concluded. "If anyone can get this thing out without killing me, it's you. I need you to-" The mirror fogged. I swore. "And so much for that idea."

Saban lifted me. "We'll get you to Rowan in time. Don't worry."

I hoped he was right.

A few minutes later, we were ready to leave. I was bundled up in a thick fleece blanket, and Saban had managed to find me a wooly hat. Flying was apparently very cold.

Saban was planning on flying almost continuously. I could sleep while he flew, he told me. We would only be landing for me to eat. He could do without sleep for a couple of days. Demons didn't need much sleep to begin with.

I was cradled in Saban's arms again. "Close your eyes," he told me.

I closed them. "Why are you so shy about shifting?" I asked.

"Because I know what my shifting looks like," Saban said. "And I don't want to frighten you."

"You have a low opinion of my courage," I noted.

Saban sighed. "That's not... I know you're brave, Anita. You've seen me shift before. And you've seen my true form. I... I don't like the way you look at me when I'm like that." He shifted from foot to foot uncomfortably. "I'm going to shift now."

I felt the arms holding me elongate into thick tentacles, which coiled around me as Saban got a better grip. When I opened my eyes, Saban was shorter. He didn't really have a torso anymore, just thick black legs tipped with cloven hooves. When I looked up, I saw he didn't have much of a head, either, just a cluster of glowing red eyes. Eyes also lined the forward edge of a pair of enormous batlike wings. Saban's wingspan was about three times as wide as I was tall. He flexed them experimentally.

Saban began to run, his cloven hooves covering the ground impossibly quickly. I could tell he was trying to make the ride as smooth as possible, but it was still bouncy. He flapped his wings once. Twice. And then we were airborne.

The ground fell away below us, and, soon, the trees below looked like green cotton, and the rocky outcrop that had been Thorn's hideout looked no bigger than my foot. Soon the outcrop faded behind us, and there was nothing below but trees.

Saban had heated up significantly. He was probably trying to keep me warm. I snuggled up against his body, and his tentacles wrapped ever so slightly tighter. This was actually very cozy, I thought as I drifted off to sleep.

*

Saban

I hated flying. Wings were so easily injured, as were the hollow bones that reduced my weight. An enemy could do a lot of damage very quickly while I was like this. I felt vulnerable. I hated feeling vulnerable.

Anita's escape from the collar had given us a chance, but we weren't out of this yet. We still had to reach Rowan in time, and the wizards there had to come up with a way to save her. I wasn't sure how much time we had. There wasn't a standard incubation time for demonic pregnancies; the imp emerged whenever it felt ready to do so. That could happen a month from now, or it could happen tomorrow. It all depended on the imp.

Emergence wasn't the only thing we had to worry about, either. Up until now, my offspring had been draining Anita very, very slowly. This gave her magic plenty of time to recover naturally, keeping her reserves of power at roughly the same level they had been before she was implanted. This could change. The imp was perfectly capable of taking Anita's magic faster than she could replenish it, draining her reserves of power. Without her magic as a buffer, her life force would be vulnerable, and the imp could drain that, causing Anita to age rapidly and then die.

I looked down at my precious burden. I had no way of keeping her safe. Not from this. My heart ached.

She knew how I felt about her now. I wasn't sure what I thought of that. On one hand, it had been said now. No longer was I burdened with that secret. Anita hadn't reacted as badly as I had feared, although that could have something to do with the circumstances of the revelation. She'd been too busy worrying about what Thorn was going to do to freak out over my declaration of love.

On the other hand... I'd daydreamed about telling her for months. Every time the circumstances of the reveal had been different, but my daydream had always ended with her declaring that she loved me, too. I'd lost that dream. Anita didn't love me, and she likely never would. I wasn't angry. She couldn't control how she felt anymore than I could. It was enough simply to be near her, to love her, but I still missed the dream.

*

Anita

My magical reserves were getting low. With plenty to eat, and lots of sleep, my power should be increasing, but the imp was draining me more rapidly now. Neither of us said anything, but we both knew that, at this rate, I'd be down to bare life force within the hour.

We'd reach Rowan not too long after that, but even the best wizards needed time to plan and prepare. I'd die long before anything could be done about the demonic life I was carrying. I was scared. I didn't want to die.

As the towers of Rowan Castle appeared below us, I felt a sharp pain in my gut. "Saban!" I gasped. The pain faded as quickly as it had come. I looked up into Saban's many eyes. "The emergence is starting," I told him quietly.