A Different Kind of Despair (12 page)

"Turning human doesn't negate the years a Doll
was alive. Diana aged to death in my arms."

Formosa extended a hand, but curled her
fingers and retracted it a moment later.

"I'm sorry for your loss, my son."

"Thank you, Mother."

"Now tell me how Koronos relates to all of
this exactly."

Well, I thought. That was quick of
her.

Marvin must've been used to her manner of
overturning the conversation like this. He extended his sliced palm
and squeezed additional droplets of blood out in front of
him.

"Koronos, get out here!" he
demanded. The blood turned into smoke as soon as it hit the ground.
Koronos, in his human form, stepped into the light of the Morgue.
His limey gaze glowed even brighter here than it did in the
Grey.

His sights lingered on me longer
than anyone else, winking slyly in my direction. I shuddered
violently.

"First of all," Marvin started before the
demon even had a chance to speak. "You are never allowed to hurt
the people in this room -got it?"

"Hurt?" the demon feigned innocence. "Perish
the thought! So tell me, how might I be of service,
Master?"

"What is your relation to the Crone of
Astheneia?"

His unnatural smile tore across his face. "I
see you're finally asking the right questions."

"So
answer
them."

Koronos ran a hand through his blonde hair,
smirking at the ceiling.

"Hierarchies and castes exist in all mortal
circles -in one form or another. Hell isn't all that different in
this regard. The good Crone, as you call her, outranks
me."

"Are you under her direct orders?"

It looked like Marvin's question was a bit too
close to the target. The demon's mouth twitched down.

"Yes."

"For how long?"

"Since Inval arrived in
Nethermountain."

Marvin crossed his arms.

"And what was your job?"

A smile reluctantly returned to his lips. "I
am not at liberty to say."

"To your
Master
?"

Formosa lifted a hand at her son. "Even devils
have rules surrounding the deals they make. Older contracts must be
honored first; doubly so if they're outranked by their own kind. Of
course, you can also make a devil yours through raw power, if you
have it at your disposal."

Koronos' eyes lit up with a dangerous
light.

"Lady Formosa, you know us awfully
well."

Marvin's mother huffed. I marveled at her
ability to level with the forces of Hell without batting an
eyelash.

"Despite her evil nature, the
Crone did make for stimulating conversation over the years. The hag
liked to gloat," she sniffed. Formosa took a bold set of steps
towards Koronos, her skirt sweeping the gray floor like a curtain
of midnight. "You knew about the coffin in the attic, so you
must've known its owner and its maker. My guess is the Crone grew
tired of waiting for Inval's life to expire. Demons can't directly
interfere with a mortal they have a deal with, so that's where you
came in. Diana was Inval's greatest weakness; you took care of that
loose end quite nicely, didn't you?"

Koronos' usual condescending presence
disappeared for the briefest moment. He bowed low before the Shinya
Shaman.

"My
Lady
," he intoned. "I commend your
brilliance."

"Save your flattery for someone who cares,"
she snapped. "I know I'm brilliant. I don't need you telling me
so."

Marvin and I recoiled a bit at the blatant
confidence of this woman. This, I realized, was what made her so
intimidating. It wasn't her age or appearance, but the mere fact
that she was absolutely certain of who she was and where she stood
in the world. I was filled with envy and admiration all at
once.

"Miraj." Formosa looked at me. "How long were
you and Diana fused?"

I raked my brain. "Fifteen minutes? Twenty at
the most."

"Excellent. Marvin, order Koronos to step into
the Grey."

Marvin motioned to the demon. "You heard
her."

Koronos stepped into the realm of in-betweens,
curious as to what Formosa was planning.

The Shinya Shaman Mother snapped her fingers.
Koronos made a startled sound as clouded chains bound him to the
floor.

"My kauna enables me to sap the strength of
spirits." A wicked smirk spread across her lips. "Suffice to say
living in Nethermountain has given me plenty of practice. Like
this, you should be able to assimilate with him for at least an
hour without breaking your Overflow threshold."

Marvin grimaced at the idea. "Miraj, fuse
herself with Koronos? What part of this idea is good?"

"It'll prevent him from reporting our actions
to the Crone, as a start," Formosa explained. "Secondly, Miraj
acquires skills she would normally have no access to. We will need
all the power we can get if we ever want to leave Nethermountain
alive."

I swallowed nervously, but approached the
struggling demon by stepping into the Grey. I set a hand on his
temple, and I could sense pure, unbridled evil just beneath the
surface of his skin. If wandering in the realm of spirits was like
moving through water, his being was like molasses. Thick and sticky
and capable of murder with a single misstep.

But, at the very least, we had to get Will and
Leo out of harm's way.

"You're smarter than this, little Shaman," he
growled as I felt his essence mingle with mine. "You're far too
young to meddle with me."

Koronos faded, and I felt his being lock into
my own. I released a painful screech as the power burned through my
veins. It felt as though it lasted days, but I knew it couldn't
have been more than a few seconds.

By the time I felt reasonably
stable I opened my eyes to discover a set of newly cloven feet. A
spiked tail twice the length of my legs, lashed around like an
angry rattlesnake. The quartz walls, a convenient mirror if there
ever was one, revealed a pair of ram-like horns spouting off the
sides of my head. My eyes were the devil's limey, glowing green,
and the kauna across my cheeks steamed like the acidic geysers of
the Moor of Souls.

"Very impressive," Formosa approved. "How do
you feel, Miraj?"

"Nauseous," I struggled. "But... stronger.
Much, much stronger."

"Excellent. You and I will raid House
Astheneia in a frontal assault. In the confusion I would like
Marvin to rally the other necromancers and retreat to the Hall of
Six Houses."

"Frontal assault? Miraj hasn't killed anyone
in her life; you can't just ask her to do something like
that."

"But Koronos
has
," Formosa sighed.
"She'll feel it as soon as she's there. A devil's bloodlust is
nothing to scoff at. We have no more time for arguing. If we want
to take down the Crone then we'll have to do it
now."

At the prospect of fighting I felt a surge of
adrenaline. My hands, now two great red maws, twitched in
anticipation. However weakened by Formosa's skills, the true nature
of evil was ever-present.

I ran a forked tongue across my
newly sharpened teeth.

"Let's go."

11: Grave Tidings

Marvin, Formosa and Diana
struggled to keep up with me. I could sense a torrent of fear, and
it guided my feet through the halls of Nethermountain without a
doubt in my step. It was... delicious, like a banquet of savory
meats and rare spices. My mouth watered. Violent images filled my
thoughts with the same ecstasy I might acquire from listening to a
symphony of the most heavenly music.

Oh no
wonder
devils adored suffering! It
was more addicting than I could fathom, and truthfully, the part of
me bound to Koronos didn't care for the particulars. Blood.
Screams. Fire. Agony. My heart fluttered with euphoria at the
notion of what lied ahead.

Enjoying yourself, little
Shaman?
I heard Koronos' voice in my mind.
He didn't seem upset now that we were fused together.
I'm not surprised. You're more sinister than you
realize.

The part of me that was still human came to a
screeching halt. I waited for the others to catch up, using it as
an excuse to argue with the demon.

"Don't pretend that you know a thing about
me."

Pretend?
He laughed.
My Lady, you said so
yourself -you'd slice the throats of those who killed your tribe.
Now that I have the opportunity to poke around in your head I can
see that you meant it. Ooh, look at what we have here~ is this your
mother, little Shaman?

An image of my ma'man sprung to the forefront
of my thoughts. I could see her grinning as though she pulled off
another one of her jokes at my expense. My heart constricted, and
the little girl I used to be sobbed in a corner of my
soul.

Quite the beauty. You take after
her in this regard, I must say.

"No one asked you," I croaked. "Now knock it
off."

Tut, tut! Just a moment -the
others still have two more corridors before they catch up. Can't
start the party without them now can we?

"Get out of my head, Koronos."

Sweet girl, release me and I'd be
more than happy to do just that. Now, do pardon me if I'm a bit
presumptuous in saying so, but isn't that the exact opposite of
what you should be doing?

He was toying with me, with my
mind and with my emotions, and I despised him for it. Once again
that anger, which I'd temporarily forgotten in my haste, returned.
He could only do this because of my weakness. Ma'man, what do I
do?

How precious! Do you
honestly believe yourself mature enough to temper that hatred
within you?
He was getting more and more
confident, I could feel it, in his ability to provoke me.
It's such a shame. Hatred can be a powerful tool,
you know. Spite, in particular, seems to be a favorite among women
such as yourself. Hatred is motive, fuel, and power all in one.
Just imagine what you could do if you honed yours. I seldom speak
the entire truth, my dear, but I meant what I told you earlier.
It's been an age since I've seen such raw, unbridled potential.
Why, just look at yourself!

Before I'd even realized it I was supporting
myself by leaning up against the wall. My hybrid appearance was
more apparent than ever with my face only inches from the quartz.
Formosa had weakened Koronos considerably, but I was no where near
experienced enough to prevent him from goading me to my limits. I
paced myself with deep breaths, as though with each exhale I
removed some of his taint from my body. But it was no use. He was
just too cunning.

You're quite a catch like this.
You'd make a fine demoness, I must say. Those horns! That scorching
rage! Oh if only I was a few centuries younger I daresay you'd be
the apple of my wandering eye.

"Me? A demon? You must be joking."

I heard Marvin and Formosa pull up behind me.
Diana was also trailing close at hand.

"Please tell me you're all ready," I muttered,
my voice resonating with the devil's syrup. Marvin placed a hand on
my arm.

Once again, his concern drew me back into the
present. In my monstrous form he saw Miraj... only Miraj. His tiny
smile did more to pull me together than I could manage in a year.
Koronos, while still there in my head, was silenced as a
result.

"I love you." The words tumbled out of my
mouth without knowing that I'd said them.

As expected, Marvin didn't return the phrase,
but he did give my hand a comforting squeeze.