Daniel Taylor Between Two Worlds (7 page)

Metistakles nodded, a faint smile on his face. “Good. I knew you could do it. The darker your thoughts, the easier the magic will be for you, and the more powerful you will become.”

Obron entered the hall. With their shaved heads and grey robes, the demonic high lords all looked alike. But after Daniel had been in the underworld for a few days, he had begun to be able to tell them apart. A scar ran through Metistakles’ right eyebrow, Antheus was the tallest of the three, and Obron had the longest nose.

Obron was Marla’s father and had been Kitana’s husband. On the day he became a high lord, the Oracle of Memnost had told him that Kitana’s child was destined to be the next Overlord. Metistakles had told him that much, but Daniel had no idea what this Oracle was or where to find it. The others kept many things hidden from him and had forbidden him to ask questions. Everything would become clear in time, they said.

Obron nodded at them and positioned himself next to the Overlord. Xandros — the
Star Wars
Emperor look-alike — had been ruling for almost a thousand years, and demons were not allowed to reign for longer than that. This was demonic law, since at a certain “age,” demons could no longer utilize their full abilities — and only a strong Overlord was a powerful Overlord.

Xandros sat stock still on his throne and observed Daniel’s progress without uttering a word. Daniel sensed that Xandros manipulated his underlings like marionettes, compelling them to carry out his orders.

Cool — when he mastered that skill, the first victim would be Kuwalski … No, those days were gone. He lived down here now. In eternal darkness.

He felt a tightening in his chest. Daniel knew the feeling: homesickness …

Stop! Don’t think about Mom
, he reprimanded himself. Metistakles’ mental blows hurt like hell, and Daniel had no desire to receive yet another. This was his new home. They accepted him here. They made him feel important, like part of a community — even though he didn’t trust the high lords one bit. Too much negative energy emanated from them. When he became one of them, he would probably stop noticing it so much. And as Metistakles had said: The darker his thoughts, the stronger he would become. He liked being able to perform magical acts using only the power of his thoughts. At last, he had become something like the heroes in his computer games.

He wanted to learn more about himself, about his real mother and his demonic roots — but above all, about how the High Council intended to transform him into a pure-blooded demon, since only then would he finally be allowed to become Overlord.

“One thing at a time,” Obron retorted sharply. He had been snooping in Daniel’s mind again.

Daniel thought that the explanations should come first, but okay — evidently the rules here were different than at school: first practice, then theory.

Daniel had tried to talk to Obron when he caught certain vibrations in the mental network — downright tirades of hate directed at him because he was a “halfling” and therefore unworthy of ascending to the throne. He’d show them all how worthy he really was of the title of Overlord.

He concentrated again, this time putting all his hatred and negative feelings to work, trying to focus his magical energy in the palm of his hand. A blazing blue ball of electricity materialized, sparking and reeking of ozone. The sphere wavered, swelled up and then shrank a little, but it didn’t fizzle out like his previous attempt.

He had done it!

“Now, hurl it at this human,” said Metistakles with a devious grin, pointing at a young woman who had just stepped out of a dark corner of the hall. She stared anxiously at the group of robed men.

“Vanessa!” Daniel cried out.

His sphere instantly dissolved. He was about to run to her, but thanks to his supernatural vision, he realized that it wasn’t really her. Vanessa had a tiny mole on her cheek. Even though this girl did not have the mole, she could otherwise have been Nessa’s twin.

Metistakles laughed quietly. “Your reactions betray your true feelings. You’re not really one of us.”

Anger rose within Daniel. He wanted so badly to finally be a part of “something,” to belong somewhere. Metistakles’ words wounded him deeply. But he couldn’t kill a human being!

The girl suddenly flickered.

Wait — that wasn’t a human being, it was just an illusion!

I’ll show them what I’m capable of
, Daniel thought, producing a new sphere in no time. He took a deep breath, and then threw the deadly weapon at the girl …

There was only one reason Marla didn’t return to the human world: She had to watch out for Silvan. After all, he was her brother, and she actually did feel close to him somehow. Unbelievable, but true. She blamed it on the blood bond between them. Marla had no allies in the underworld — not even Sirina. She was just a hag who ordered Marla around.

Marla felt less alone since Silvan had entered her life. They really were quite similar. In the upper world, Silvan had been just as alone as she was down here. Marla sat on her bed and shook her head at the thought. Why was she suddenly so sentimental? What was wrong with her? Ever since she met Mike, everything in her head had become a muddled mess. Although she hadn’t seen the young man for an eternity — at least, it seemed that way to her; time functioned differently down here — she still couldn’t get him out of her head. Actually, Mike was reason number two why she would rather stay in her dark hole in the underworld. She would just get more dependent on him otherwise. Even Metistakles had noticed that something was wrong with her. Lucky for her, he was focused on other things and hadn’t been paying her much attention, because she couldn’t get Mike off her mind. However, she had locked away her memories of him in her fairy-tale room, where not even Metistakles could penetrate.

She didn’t understand why she wasn’t allowed to watch Silvan’s training. Fine, she was forbidden to enter the great hall, but she so rarely had a chance to see him. The high lords seemed to be purposefully keeping her away from him. That wasn’t right —
she
was the one who had tracked Silvan down, after all. The High Council was probably afraid that Marla might learn something.

Marla felt the stone ceilings of the underworld closing in on her. Maybe she should go up one more time?

Vanessa was pedaling so hard that her thighs were cramping up. She biked home as quickly as she could, but not because it was drizzling. She scarcely noticed the raindrops; she was lost in her thoughts — thoughts of Daniel. Vanessa had been at Colleen’s house, but she couldn’t bear being with her friend for very long. That morning, Anne had told her that Danny wasn’t in his bed when she looked in on him before her shift. She had called Peter to ask him whether Daniel was at his house. He had told her that she should talk things over with James Carpenter.

Talk things over … Vanessa had been mulling over Anne’s words ever since. She wanted to go straight to her to find out whether there had been any news. Daniel may have been missing since yesterday, when Vanessa had …
Don’t think about it
. Vanessa’s stomach tightened as she rode into her garage, put her bike away, and shut the garage door from the inside. She had to know where things stood with Danny!

Her parents’ car wasn’t there; they were out visiting friends. Vanessa wouldn’t have been able to discuss Danny’s “nature” with them anyway. She felt alone. Hopefully Anne would be at home, but not even Anne knew the truth about her son … If only Vanessa had someone to talk to. Even Marla would do, but she hadn’t made an appearance today.

Daniel and Sirina — the image was seared into her brain, and remembering it made her feel even worse. Why did she have to go and fall in love with a demon? Vanessa could hardly believe all the things that had happened to her recently. Her worldview had been completely upended.
Maybe it’s all just a crazy dream …

Vanessa’s eyes had gotten used to the darkness of the garage. It was cloudy outside, so almost no light was shining through the little window. The overhead light was broken, and Vanessa had to take care not to trip over anything as she slowly made her way toward the door leading into the house. She hadn’t been afraid of the dark before, but now that she had come face-to-face with Joe Adams and the demons, it made her a little uncomfortable.

A faint scratching behind her set her on high alert. She suddenly had the feeling that she wasn’t alone anymore. Was it a stray cat?
Please, please, let it just be a cat!

She stood completely motionless in the middle of the garage as though she were rooted to the spot. Her heart was racing.

“Danny?” she whispered, still not daring to turn around.

“No.”

Oh, God!
Vanessa wanted to scream, but the sound was stuck in her throat. That wasn’t Danny’s voice. It was far too deep and raw.

Vanessa could hear the drumming of raindrops on the roof and a faint rustling noise. Preparing herself to see something unspeakably horrible, she spun around on her heel, ready to run away.

In the furthest corner of the garage stood a tall figure. Vanessa could only make out the outlines of his form. Oh, no! Had a demon come to take her into the underworld?

“Wh-what do you want?” she asked, her voice shaking. “Who are you?”

The figure took a step toward her. “Please don’t be afraid. I’m Daniel’s father.”

What?
Vanessa had been ready for anything, just not … “J-James Carpenter?”

The tall man nodded and took another step toward her. Now the dim light from the window fell directly on him. Vanessa could make out his face: high cheekbones, a strong chin, and brown hair streaked with grey at the temples. The resemblance to Daniel was striking.

She relaxed immediately. “I thought you were a demon!” she cried out in relief, then bit her lip. The man would think she wasn’t playing with a full deck.

“A demon?” James’ eyes widened. “What do you know about demons?”

“Why don’t you tell me what you’re looking for in my parents’ garage instead!” The whole situation seemed a little fishy. She slowly backed toward the door. Out of the corner of her eye, she searched for something she might be able to use to protect herself. There were garden tools hanging on the wall — a shovel, rakes, and spades.

“I can’t allow the demons to find me, and I wanted to speak with you alone,” Carpenter said. “Listen, Vanessa …”

She gave a start when Daniel’s father said her name, but he just went on talking, as though he were afraid she might run away. “I know that you’re Daniel’s girlfriend. Anne told me that over the telephone — and also that he’s disappeared. Can you tell me anything about it? What do you know about the demons?”

“N-not much,” she stammered.

“Do you know where Daniel is right now?”

Vanessa could hear the concern in his voice. The whole situation was absurd. Daniel’s father knew about the demons. Her normal world had been shattered to pieces.

Wait a moment — of course he knew about the demons! Daniel was a half-demon! Vanessa tried to pull herself together. Might Danny be in trouble — or even in real danger? Maybe she should share what she did know with Daniel’s biological father.

“There was a red-haired demon named Sirina. She wanted to take Daniel with her into the underworld.” Tears blurred her vision, and her voice started failing her. “She said she was supposed to become his wife. I think Daniel went with her.”

“Damn!” Carpenter ran a frantic hand through his hair. “I should have known.”

Should have known?
Vanessa gasped. That sounded like Danny’s father knew more than her. Based on his reaction, Daniel must really be in a tight spot.