High Demon 3 - Demon's King (14 page)
Read High Demon 3 - Demon's King Online
Authors: Connie Suttle
Sitting down, I turned my head toward the stars, focusing on one. Stars and suns created energy constantly. They wouldn't miss what I needed now, if I could force it to my will. Closing my eyes, I held the mental image of the star in my mind and
Pulled
.
* * *
"Perhaps you should come see for yourself, Norian. They were delivered two days ago." Ildevar Wyyld smiled at his adopted heir.
"But how did they get here?" Norian was bewildered.
"I am not inclined to question at the moment. You have been looking for these for a while. They conveniently have confessed nearly all their crimes." Ildevar walked ahead of Norian, through dark corridors flanking the cells in Ildevar's dungeons. Ildevar seldom used them, unless it was to keep a prisoner until feeding day.
Norian stared and whistled at the three prisoners. He had been looking for these for a while. Thirty years, at least. The last remnants of Solar Red glared at him through the bars of their cells.
"Do we have to report them to anyone?" Norian turned to Ildevar.
"No, they were delivered straight to my dungeon while the note appeared on my desk. We are the only two who know they are here, other than the ones who sent them."
"Are we going to let anyone else know?" Norian smiled at Ildevar.
"Only if that is your wish, child."
"I don't wish."
"Good. I think I'll start with this one," Ildevar gave a nod toward the prisoner in the middle cell.
"When?" Norian was mildly curious.
"Two days."
"Good." Norian turned on his heel and walked away. These prisoners were never getting out of Ildevar's dungeon alive.
* * *
"What did she do? What did she do?" Teeg was shouting and fretting at the same time. Reah had done something—Astralan had said not only was Shillverr's energy drain stopped, but the core had been healed somehow. Reah was connected to this, only none of them could determine just how she was connected. Now, she lay unconscious on the grass, still in full Thifilatha.
"We have to get her turned back—we can't leave her like this," Astralan was fretting almost as much as Teeg. Teeg was glad Farzi and Nenzi hadn't come; they'd be having a breakdown.
"Reah, come on baby, wake up. Please. For me. Do this for me, all right?" Teeg was begging. He was about to promise anything to her when she moaned softly.
* * *
Waking up flat on my back in the middle of the wilderness while night insects sang in the trees around me wasn't the best situation in which I've ever found myself. "Thank the stars," Astralan muttered from somewhere nearby. Teeg was standing on my left arm, peering into my face. "Baby, change back. We need to take you home so Jes can have a look at you."
"Teeg, I don't feel good." I covered my eyes with my free hand—Teeg was still standing on my left arm; I couldn't move it unless I wanted to knock him to the ground. My stomach was threatening to heave up its contents; if there was anything left to heave.
"I know, baby. Change back. We'll get you home and Jes will fix it. I promise." Teeg sounded upset, for some reason. My mind felt fuzzy—cloudy somehow, and I had to think for a moment before I could recall how to change back. Teeg jumped down the moment things looked to go back to normal.
* * *
"What happened?" Jes was fretting the moment Teeg showed up with me wrapped in his arms.
"A little more work than Teeg wanted from her, that's what," Astralan murmured. Lenden was there and looked as if he were going to lift me from Teeg's arms. Honestly, I just wanted to spend quality time with the toilet. When everybody was talking to one another and leaving me out of it, my body decided to react in its own way. I heaved all over the floor, causing Jes to jump aside, Teeg to shout and Farzi, Nenzi and Jusef to quickly search for something to clean the floor.
"All gone now?" Teeg was beside me on the bathroom floor later, when it looked as if I might stop heaving up nothing.
"Hope so," I muttered. My throat was raw, my insides felt as if they wanted to become outsides and I just wanted to curl up and die somewhere.
"None of that; come on, sweetheart, let's get you up so you can rinse out your mouth."
"Teeg, I don't want to get up." I was hugging myself as hard as I could. Nauseous didn't begin to describe how I felt.
"I know. Lenden?" Lenden appeared in the doorway to the bathroom. "Help me get this one to the sink. We'll get to the bed after that." Lenden took one side, Teeg took the other and they lifted me easily off the floor. I was still trying to curl into a ball, but both of them forced me to straighten and shuffle toward the sink. Lenden propped me up while I weakly brushed my teeth; Teeg went to find clean pajamas for me. I was afraid to ask for a bath—most likely I'd fall asleep in it, anyway.
"You just spent too much of your energy," Jes said when he examined me after Teeg got me into bed. "And I'd like for you to drink a jumble. Jusef is making one now and cursing the rest of us in Amterean while he's doing it," Jes added.
"He
is
cursing in his native language," Lenden walked in, carrying the glass and a straw. "The last I heard, we all have mulch for brains."
"Can't argue with that," I said weakly as Jes accepted the glass and stuck the straw in it for me. Teeg chased the others out, pulled me against him in the bed and proceeded to hold the glass while ordering me to drink. I felt too ill to argue with him, rolling my head against his shoulder and closing my eyes after only a few sips.
"Baby, this will be over before long, I promise," Teeg whispered as I drifted off.
* * *
"I still don't know how she did it and there's two more out there, if we got the truth out of those two," Teeg held his head in his hands. "How can we put her through this? How are we going to ask this of her? You saw what it did to her last night."
"But the populations on those worlds will die if we don't do something," Teeg's assistant had come—courtesy of Galaxsan—to discuss things with Teeg.
"Tell me something I don't know," Teeg muttered. "Dee, tell me what to do. And make it something that won't kill her. And me as a result."
"It didn't kill her last night—it just made her weak and ill. What does the physician say? How long will it take her to recover from this?"
"If she starts eating, perhaps an eight-day. Maybe a little more."
"We have little time, unless we want more of these worlds to die. I've gotten intelligence on two other rogues that Zellar trained. Has the one you captured last night been able to talk?"
"Jes is working on him, trying to get him conscious for more than a few moments at a time. What if she's permanently harmed, Dee?"
"What will you do, if that turns out to be the case?"
"If I don't kill myself, Torevik Rath will kill me anyway."
* * *
"Em-pah's here." Those words greeted me when I woke—Teeg must have gotten up earlier.
"Huh?" I felt lethargic and weak. My eyes were refusing to open for some reason.
"Come on, little squirrel, let's get you to breakfast." Lenden was lifting me off the bed. Teeg hadn't come in the night before until very late. He'd barely wakened me while slipping in and wrapping his arms around me. Now, he was up early and off somewhere, leaving Lenden to carry me to breakfast. I wasn't going to complain—Lenden wanted to adopt me, somehow. Compared to the one grandfather I knew I had, this was more than different. Addah Desh wouldn't have shown gentleness if someone paid him to do so.
"Jusef, look what we have here." Lenden settled me on a barstool. Farzi and Nenzi came in and they sat to my left while Lenden sat on my right. Jusef served oatmeal with brown sugar and a bit of cream. It was good and helped ease my stomach. Farzi and Nenzi looked worried, but turned their heads away when I tried to catch them watching me.
"Where's Teeg?" I asked.
"Working with the prisoner," Lenden replied. "Little girl, don't worry yourself over that. He's bad and deserves whatever he gets."
"I know," I answered wearily. Jes must be with Teeg, since the rogue warlock had been wounded. Wouldn't do to let the man die before he answered all of Teeg's questions.
"Eat your breakfast. We'll be taking care of you today," Lenden rubbed my shoulders as I went back to my oatmeal.
* * *
"They split up," Kastalt's voice was shaky but he couldn't help himself—he was answering any question these two asked. The physician had given painkill; that helped some. "They sold the information on Zellar, Nidris admitted that when I saw them last. Didn't matter, we were tired of looking at him anyway."
Teeg knew about that—Zellar had been disfigured nearly forty-five years before.
"The names? Besides Nidris?" Teeg pushed.
"Qwan. Halmus."
"The ones we sent to Karathia," Astralan said softly. Teeg nodded.
"Where did Nidris go? Do you know that?"
"Said he was heading home for a while until he wasn't hunted any longer," Kastalt was fading fast. Teeg looked at Jes, who shook his head. He'd given a higher dose of painkill than should have been given, just to keep Kastalt awake and talking. Kastalt was near death as it was—this was going to finish him off.
"Do you know where Nidris' home is?" Teeg gentled his voice.
"Alliance," Kastalt whispered. "Tulgalan."
"But there isn't anyone with talent on Tulgalan," Astralan denied Kastalt's claim.
"Hasn't been there long. Family," Kastalt grunted with the effort to speak, "moved there twenty turns ago. Hiding power. Hunted by Karathia. All of them." Kastalt slumped in his chair. Jes went to check the pulse and looked up at Teeg, shaking his head. Kastalt was dead.
"Get rid of that," Teeg ordered. Stellan came forward to take the body.
"What now, Boss? We won't get into the Reth Alliance."
"Not in any normal manner, no. We also need more information on Nidris. I'll send a message to Wylend Arden." Teeg stalked from the back room of the warehouse where they'd held Kastalt.
* * *
"Erland, look at this." Wylend handed him the note from Teeg San Gerxon.
"What is it this time?" Erland was frustrated—Teeg had managed to capture more rogue warlocks in a matter of months than Erland and his spies had managed to hunt down in decades.
"He's asking for information on Nidris. Says he received information from Kastalt before he died that Nidris had received training from Zellar. Says Kastalt told him that Nidris had gone to Tulgalan—that his family had relocated there to get away from us."
"Nidris," Erland almost growled the name. He and Wylend had reason to loathe Nidris Hazlan and his entire family. The one highly placed family who'd plotted to kill Wylend's father and then managed to escape. Wylend and Erland had seen the others executed when Wylend wrestled the throne away from them.
"And now he's draining cores, more than likely," Wylend heaved a frustrated sigh. "Who knows what he might do with the power that will give him?"
"We need to notify Norian Keef," Erland was motivated, suddenly. "If that fool has started draining Tulgalan or any other Alliance worlds, this could be disastrous."
"I will come with you—I haven't seen Lissa in days and my grandson is still missing. I don't know what I might do in her place."
Chapter 7
"Wylend and Erland are coming for a visit," Lissa announced as she walked into Norian's office; he'd been going over reports with Lendill.
"Is there a reason we should know this?" Norian looked up at Lissa.
"Yeah. Em-pah Wylend got a message from Teeg San Gerxon. Says that he captured one of those rogues Zellar trained. The note said that one of the rogues has possibly slipped into the Alliance, to meet with his rogue family of wizards, who are reportedly living on Tulgalan."
"You're joking." Norian was standing in a blink. "You don't think they're draining Tulgalan, do you?"
"No idea, but Em-pah seems to think that this particular wizard would do just about anything to keep away from him and his network of spies. Erland says they'll explain that completely when they get here."
"We're here, now," Erland and Wylend folded into Norian's office. "Nidris Hazlan and his family are murdering scum," Erland went on. "The Hazlan clan led the coup against Warlend, Wylend's father and killed him to take the throne six thousand turns ago, give or take. The Hazlans would kill their children if it would get them what they want."
"You can't mean that," Lissa sounded skeptical.
"Already happened, granddaughter," Wylend sighed. "Three of their children were in my father's court at the time. They knew nothing of the coup and were killed right along with my father's guards."
"Expendable, to keep suspicion away from their clan," Erland said angrily. "Warlend didn't suspect them at all, and they hit him like a storm. Zellar was in on the planning, but he was too much of a coward to come and fight with the others. Teeg San Gerxon confirmed his death for us," Erland added.
"How did he confirm the death?" Lissa folded her arms across her chest.
"We got the head. Wylend placed it in stasis and locked it in the treasury."
"You got the head? Gross," Lissa muttered.
"Best way we have of making a positive ID," Erland replied. "It got knocked around a little in an explosion, if I hear correctly. Teeg managed to get it somehow and sent it to us."
"And what does Teeg San Gerxon get out of all this?" Lissa asked, feeling a bit grumpy.
"He wants to meet with Wylend sometime soon. He also wants in on the take-down of the Hazlan Clan." Erland handed the note to Norian. Lendill moved so he could read over Norian's shoulder.
"We should allow it, in my opinion." Ildevar Wyyld appeared in Norian's office. "Hello, child, are you well?" He smiled at Norian. "Lissa," he nodded respectfully to her, "always a pleasure."
"How are we going to work this? Can we just allow someone from outside the Alliance to skip right in and do what he pleases?" Lendill looked at Norian. Erland coughed politely.
"We do it already," Norian jerked his head at Erland's words. Erland maintained his Karathian citizenship, although his marriage to Lissa granted citizenship on Le-Ath Veronis as well.
"Then we need to lay some ground rules," Lendill grumped.
"I hesitate to place too stringent a leash on him—he's managed to capture more rogues in five years than we have in decades," Wylend pointed out carefully. He had no desire to anger the Head of the ASD or his second-in-command.
"Tory and Ry have already worked with him—they have respect for him," Lendill grudgingly admitted. "And he isn't a San Gerxon by birth. Haven't been able to tell just who he was before Arvil adopted him, but we're still doing research."
"What if he succeeds in setting up the Campiaan Alliance?" Lissa asked. "Will they compete with the Reth Alliance?"
"How? They are already self-sufficient," Ildevar pointed out. "They get no legal goods from the Alliance, and we get none from them."
"But the black market thrives," Norian observed dryly.
"As it always will. Think you, child, that it will ever die completely? If the Campiaan Alliance becomes a reality, perhaps we will be able to hammer out trade agreements that will protect both sides while allowing legal trade of what we do desire. Imagine getting Gishi fruit easily and inexpensively." Ildevar smiled indulgently at his heir.
"I'd go for that," Lendill nodded. He loved Gishi fruit and had only gotten it when an illegal shipment had been confiscated in the occasional raid. His father loved it too, and managed to get it now and then.
"And we almost got a promise from Teeg San Gerxon to look for Reah and Gavril if they're out there somewhere. Chances are that rogues have both of them, and since he's hunting the rogues, he might come across them. Of course, he and Reah have some history, but I'm hoping that doesn't keep him from treating her well if he finds her."
"I think he'll treat her well," Tory folded in and put an arm around Lissa. "Sorry, Mom, Ry was listening in and he sent mindspeech. I couldn't help myself."
"Where is your brother? I swear, I should have kept that restraint on him. Now he listens to everything." Lissa sounded grumpy but Tory gave her an extra squeeze and she smiled up at him.
"As I was saying, none of you saw the way he'd look at her. I know he jerked San Gerxon's wealth away from her, but her claim would have been voided anyway, since she was indirectly connected to Arvil's death. Teeg just managed to separate himself from all that so he'd have it free and clear."
"And now he's building an Alliance," Norian tossed Wylend's note on his desk. "Set up a meeting, Wylend. As soon as possible. If that perverted piece of shit warlock Nidris Hazlan intends to drain Alliance worlds, I want to know about it and I want to send everything we have against him and his family."
* * *
"Reah, how are you feeling?"
"Awful." I did feel that way. Didn't feel like moving or doing anything else. Jes had already come to see me in Teeg's solarium, asking if I felt like getting a little exercise. I'd snapped at him and he'd slunk away.
"Baby, it has been two days. Surely you should feel better by now."
"Teeg, I don't feel good. I'm sorry." I pulled the cool pack off my eyes and glared at him.
"We need to get you up and around quickly. Whatever you did for Shillverr needs to be done for two other worlds. They'll die if you don't help, baby. I already sent Stellan and Celestan to Roorthi and Xordthe. They're in the same shape. We're still trying to figure out how you plugged the leak in the core to keep the energy from draining out, but we need to do it again. Jes says you should be good to go in an eight-day. I was hoping for sooner than that."
"Teeg, are you trying to kill me? Is that what you want? I don't have anything—you're not going to collect insurance money or anything when I die."
"Baby, don't even talk about that," Teeg growled softly. I was too tired to point out that he'd gotten his wealth and position from Arvil's death. If he hoped to capitalize on mine, he needed to think again.
"How is Gavril?" Teeg hadn't given me any information in days.
"Gavril is fine, if a little frustrated. He's learning woodworking," Teeg said. "Not something he planned to do with his life, apparently."
"Gavril is probably the smartest person I know," I placed the cool pack over my eyes again and leaned back in my chair. "I hope he gets away from you."
"He won't. Neither will you," Teeg whispered. "We need you up and around in three days, Reah. Do Xordthe and Roorthi for me and I'll let you see him."
I was up and sputtering, letting the cool pack drop to the floor in a wet sounding plop. "Teeg, don't dangle that in front of me," I wanted to shout at him, only I was still too tired. "Don't promise that and then pull it away from me." I was crying and I didn't mean to do that.
"You love him that much?"
"He's my best friend, what do you think?" I hugged myself and turned away from Teeg. The building housing Teeg's apartment on Shillverr wouldn't support a pool at this level, but he had a beautiful water fountain in the solarium that rippled over natural stone. Water lilies and other plants grew in the shallow expanse. I went to sit on the flat rocks that bordered it, trying to get my tears under control. Would he allow me to see Chash? Would he? It was almost too much to hope for.
"Baby, I see you love him a lot. Hold onto that, all right? Do Roorthi and Xordthe for me and you'll see Gavril. I promise." I nodded, still not trusting myself to speak. "I'll get Jusef to bring something for you." Teeg's footsteps walked away from me.
* * *
"I have the answer from Teeg San Gerxon," Erland said. He'd asked Lissa to arrange a meeting with Norian and Lendill.
"Well?" Norian didn't want to waste any time guessing.
"He says he can arrange something in fifteen days. And he says to bring Lissa. Says he'll have a gift for all of us," Erland waved the note Teeg had sent to Wylend.
"Do you think he'll bring more rogues with him?" Lendill asked.
"No idea. But he does have some stipulations."
"Of course he does," Norian visibly deflated. But if San Gerxon could bring in anyone on Norian's wanted list, he would be more than happy to hand over a few concessions.
"Wylend had to think carefully about some of these," Erland said. "But he's willing to allow it, since Wilffox and Wilffin Hardlow pulled their strings and got them into trouble before."
"Who are you talking about?" Norian asked.
"The brothers Starr," Erland said. "Astralan, Stellan, Celestan and Galaxsan. Powerful warlocks who fell in with the Hardlows. Now they work for Teeg and seem to be redeeming themselves. Wylend is going to suspend their criminal status on a trial basis, unless they get into trouble again. He'll lower the hammer if that happens."
"And what does Teeg San Gerxon want from us?" Norian lifted an eyebrow at the warlock.
"To suspend the criminal status of the reptanoids. He says they work for him and they wouldn't have committed any crimes if they hadn't been threatened and mistreated," Erland said. "You know how Reah feels about them."
"She threatened me if I hurt any of them," Lendill snorted.
"Exactly. Teeg wants a clean record for all eight of them, and their names are on this list," Erland
Pulled
a list into his hand and handed it to Norian.
"Who gave out these names?" Norian looked at all eight, shaking his head in confusion. "Does he plan to bring them when he comes?"
"I think so—he wants bodyguards, I think, just in case."
"I would do the same," Lendill muttered.
"Arrange to have Ry and Tory come with Lissa—since they've worked with Teeg before. Where are we meeting him?" Norian asked.
"He says he'll meet you at the space station, in the private rotunda reserved for visiting dignitaries," Erland said. "Wylend and I intend to be there, with our own guards. Lissa will probably bring Gavin, Tony and the Falchani twins. Gardevik will likely be there as well. I don't think anything will get past them, including the Starr brothers and the reptanoids."
"They really turn to lion snake?" Norian wondered idly.
"Reah said they did," Lendill nodded. "She also said their speech wasn't perfect—that something happened when they were created. I wish she were here so we could ask questions."
"Lendill, we all wish for that," Norian grumbled. "And for Gavril to come home to Lissa. She hasn't been the same since his disappearance. If anything happens to that boy, she'll go crazy and Gavin with her."
* * *
"Little squirrel, don't do this if you're not ready." Lenden whispered to me after Astralan set us down inside a house on the outskirts of Kristl, a city on Roorthi. Teeg didn't own this one—he was borrowing it from a Roorthi businessman who'd been quite happy to allow us to use his summer home. It was late fall on Roorthi anyway, and the owner was embroiled in business deals in the capital city nearly two hundred clicks away.
"Lenden," I said.
"Call me Em-pah," he corrected gently.
"Em-pah, I have to do this." I did—Teeg had promised I'd see Gavril. I wanted that more than anything. I'd suffer through days of debilitation for just a hug from Chash.
"We'll do it tomorrow—we'll try to get her built up a little more today before we start," Jes said. He'd been fussing around me ever since I apologized for snapping at him. I didn't know what to do with his mindless devotion; it was starting to scare me, to be honest. Lenden wasn't sure what to think about it either, but he didn't say anything. He was only a bodyguard, after all, even if he had adopted me. Jusef was also protective, but not in the smothering manner that Jes displayed.
If I thought it might get me anywhere, I'd ask Teeg to send Jes back to Campiaa. There wasn't much chance of that—Jes was the only physician Teeg employed. Jes had already told me that. Farzi and Nenzi were also beginning to be wary around Jes, but knew not to say anything. They had no desire to upset Teeg. Neither did I, in case he withheld my visit with Gavril.
"How's the tummy?" Jusef asked. "Feel like a snack?"
"Jusef, someday I'll cook for you," I promised. He was very good at what he did—Lenden said that Jusef had been cooking for a long time. Jusef could work in any of Desh's restaurants and be comfortable there, I think. He never served anything that would sit heavily on my stomach, preparing lighter fare that was nourishing and very good at the same time. Plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables found their way into the menu, as did nutritious soups and stews. Now he pushed a plate of tiny sandwiches toward me as I settled at the kitchen island.
Farzi and Nenzi consented to share my snack, so Jusef made more for the others, who came to sit with us. Teeg's communicator buzzed while we ate.
"What is it, Dee?" He asked. I hadn't heard that name before.
"His assistant," Farzi said softly, grabbing another small sandwich from the tray.
"The assistant I wasn't allowed to meet," I whispered back, bumping my shoulder against Farzi's. He smiled at me and bit into his food. Now I had a name to go with the title.
"Teeg, that woman is causing trouble," the voice said. Teeg could see the image—I sat too far away to get any of it. All I could do was listen in.
"Ardalin? What's she doing?"
"Hired someone to hurl a few blastbombs at the palace," the voice said. "We have the culprits but we haven't located her yet."
"How much damage?" Teeg was cursing under his breath while his assistant spoke.
"Not much; the guards didn't let them get close enough to do anything more. Some burn marks on the western wall and the lawn is torn up."
"Keep looking for the bitch," Teeg growled. "And keep those bastards locked up. I may come and question them myself."
"Probably what she's hoping for," the voice replied.