Rupture: Rise of the Demon King (21 page)

Seeko walked up to them, both silently eating. He knew they were talking to each other’s in their minds. “Good morning,” he said to break their silence.

Mori looked up, smiling at him. “Good morning.”

“Seeko, we have to talk about the other portals,” Lorissa said.

The smile faded on Seeko’s face as he heard this. “Oh yeah … What about them?”

“We know where the remaining four portals are located,” Lorissa responded. “Mother has already told Kazuma. He has marked them on his map.”

Seeko looked up to the Mother, standing at the altar. “How do you guys know where they are?”

The Mother looked up to Seeko and answered his question.
“The Voice that lives within all demons. They told me the locations, involuntarily. You have it in you too, probably hidden within Kerodesis.”

“Oh yeah, that voice. He hid it from me.”

“You should eat, hero,”
she said.
“You leave soon.”

He nodded and moved to the table, enjoying the rest of his time in the chapel.

/ / / / /

The bright sun forced Seeko to squint as he moved outside the temple. He smiled and breathed in the cool, damp air of the forest. Kazuma’s voice broke his reflection: “The next portal is on Linea Island. If we walk south from here, we should reach the Zan River. From there, we can follow the road to Port Arinthi and take a ferry to Linea Island. After we seal that portal, we’ll take the one near Port Merina. That’s farther south. We’ll take another boat.” He looked on his map and continued. “Then we have to go all the way across the Vicussa Desert, into Renthdra Gorge. That one will be the hardest one to get to. The last one is in Vornal, deep in Halcyon territory.” He scratched his jaw. “Never mind. That one will be the hardest to get to.”

Seeko brushed his hand through his hair. “Can we just deal with one at a time? It’s too much to handle all at once.”

“Well,
hero
, it’s better to be prepared. Just in case something unexpected happens.”

Lorissa walked up between them, wearing a bag on her back. Seeko looked down at her with an eyebrow raised. “Wait … you’re coming with us?”

“I guess Kazuma never told you.”

“Because I’m against the entire idea,” Kazuma said.

A yellow blur moved in the corner of Seeko’s eye. Keith was suddenly on the other side of him. “I guess you know Lorissa is coming, then?” Keith asked.

Seeko looked to Mori, who stood ahead of him. He stared at her with a frown. “Yes, I knew too. But I thought Kazuma told you,” she said, trying to defend herself.

“I was hoping she would change her mind,” the ex-soldier said. “We already have one demon in the group.”

“I’m not a demon,” Lorissa said. “Plus, I have to go. It’s my
punishment
for leading you to Mother and the sanctuary.”

“I’m not a demon, either, Kazuma,” Seeko said. “I just have a demon inside me.”

“That is still a demon,” Kazuma replied, voice on edge.

“Besides, how would you get out of the forest without me?”
Lorissa thought. “Sorry, I’m trying to use my voice.”

Seeko smiled and faced the forest again. “The more the merrier, I guess.”

Kazuma sighed and dropped his arms to his sides.

“I should thank you guys,” Seeko said, clearing his throat. He spun to face the company. “You guys saved my life even when I threatened to kill you. And you continue to follow my lead. You don’t have to if you don’t want to.” He looked to Keith, to Mori. “Either of you can lead if you want.”

Both stood silent.

“It will be fine if she comes along,” Kazuma said after a moment, “as long as she doesn’t try anything.” Kazuma formed a ball of fire in his hand, a red version of Seeko’s fire.

Suddenly, water burst up around his hand, putting out his fire. “Or what?” Lorissa said with a smirk on her face.

Kazuma shook the water off his hand and dried it on his hip. “Whatever.”

“Well then, let’s go,” Seeko said. He marched into the forest.

“You probably don’t want to go that way.”

He stopped and faced Lorissa. “Oh, right. Lead the way.”

20: Repentance

20 Din, 112 AV: Day 149

In a few days, the company reached the Zan River. They followed it south until they hit the road and the bridge that crossed the river. On the other side of the bridge lay Fort Zan, exactly as Seeko remembered it.

The fort stood along a bend in the river. There were only two gates into the wooden-walled fort, and the river enclosed all but the south. From the west was the narrow bridge and a hundred feet of no man’s land. To the south was a road that eventually wound east, following the river to Envoran. Fort Zan was upon a hill and the land to the south and east sloped sharply away.

Inside the fort were several wooden buildings and at the center was a large keep. The company crossed the bridge and entered the fort without problems.

Once in Fort Zan, Seeko and company restocked. Mori purchased for him a fine short-bow made of a red yew and a short-sword with an elaborate blue hilt. The sword had a matching white sheath, trimmed with an intricate blue leaf pattern. Seeko asked how much it cost, but Mori just laughed and tossed them to him.

Seeko had asked Kazuma where his first sword was. “Probably in the middle of the desert,” he stated. “In the back of one of my soldiers.”

“Hey, I’ve apologized for that profusely,” Seeko said.

“Ya.” Kazuma turned away. “I know.” He took a deep breath and grabbed the hilt of his sword. “I know.”

“Is there any way I can make it up to you?”

“Can you bring them back? Like Lorissa?” he said with a hint of hope.

Seeko glared at the ground, frowning. “I wouldn’t know where to begin.”

Kazuma walked away, muttering to himself, “Some hero you are,” as he left.

/ / / / /

During the journey, Seeko tried to communicate to Kerodesis, but the only thing he got was insults and laughter. On more than one occasion, Kerodesis tried to break out of the cage that bound him, rattling and shaking in his cell. As always, the bars of lightning held him at bay.

“As long as I am alive, you can’t leave, Kerodesis,”
Seeko had thought to him after his latest struggle.
“Give it up.”

“No, never! You come into my body and take it over? You are the worst type of demon! Much worse than any of us! I will destroy you. I will consume you. I will incinerate you—”
Seeko cut off the link to him.

What a jerk,
he thought. He paused.
The muttering returns.
The annoying voices of the utaru returned, each one a screaming monstrosity of violence. At first, Seeko had thought that he had silenced the Kikoeru, but as the days trudged on, the voices returned, louder than before. However, there were benefits to the Voice. He could communicate with the Mother, who occasionally asked him how Lorissa was doing and how their journey was going. He could also study how the demons communicated in detail, using their own system against them. Occasionally, Seeko caught glimpses of Yoshino in the Kikoeru, but for the most part, the demon concealed himself from the Voice. Seeko wondered how Yoshino hid himself. No other demon could hide from it for long, and neither could he. He could ignore it, though, so he supposed that was what the other demons did.

He asked the Mother about Yoshino.
“He is a clever Akeni,”
she stated through the Voice.
“He has dreams that are beyond any I have ever seen.”

“So, how does he know Mori? Mori said he was her father’s sage, but how could he be if he’s a demon?”

“The demons have been here for a while, longer than the humans know. He most likely assimilated into your culture, taking the guise of a sage.”

“How do the demons shapeshift? What element is it?”

“Dark magic allows us to change our appearance. Can you change into fire? It is the same thing. Channel a lot of dark magic, will yourself into another shape, and it will happen. It is most painful, though.”

“So this form of Yoshino …”
He sent her a mental picture of him, white hair with black clothing.
“… is not his true form?”

“Not exactly. Akeni look humanoid, but not as much as we Syran do. We have pointed ears and wings. His real form looks more like this.”

She sent him a picture of a tall, muscular, gray-skinned humanoid with long, pointed claws on its hands. The ears were long and pointed and so were the teeth. It had two sets of horns on its head, a large set pointing upward and a smaller set following the curve of its skull. It had long black hair and crimson-red eyes. The picture moved, as if a memory, and jumped toward Seeko. He dispelled the image.

“That is messed up. Why don’t they return to that shape? Fight in that shape?”

“It is very painful and difficult, like I said, to change forms. Unlike elemental shapeshifting, this is permanent.”

“What about the eyes? Why can’t they change them?”

“Difficult to explain,”
she said after a while.
“The eyes are windows into the soul. Uniquely colored eyes, like yours and Lorissa’s, show that your sparks have gone through extreme stress. It cannot simply be changed like appearance.”

“Why are your eyes red?”

The Mother fell silent. She grew cold when she spoke again.
“I will not tell you. That is personal.”

“Sorry,”
Seeko thought back.

But the Mother was already gone.

/ / / / /

In their spare time, Seeko sparred with the others. He could defeat Mori and Kazuma from time to time. He never fought Lorissa, for she was “more a healer than a fighter” as she put it. And try as he might, Seeko always lost to Keith. Keith used both might and magic masterfully. Seeko could not keep up with the speed of Keith’s fluid assault. He was so much stronger than Keith was in magic, but still lost.

But this duel was going to be different, he told himself. They had made camp for the night on the bank of the Zan River. Mori, Kazuma, and Lorissa were making camp while Keith and Seeko prepared for another duel.

Seeko stood opposite of Keith, blade in one hand and green-orange flame in the other. Keith held his claymore in both hands. He stared coldly at Seeko and beckoned with his blade. The others watched on one side while preparing the camp. Seeko nodded and Keith moved forward at an incredible speed. Seeko was, as usual, put on the defensive, blocking the lightning-fast strikes, one after another.

The difference in their fights was not raw power. Seeko (and Kerodesis) had more raw magical energy than the rest of the company combined, but it was not power alone that won a duel. Seeko could fight with magic, bow, or sword, but never combined the three into a fluid combat style. Keith, on the other hand, could gracefully use both sword and spell in tandem—a master of both. Seeko was learning quickly, coming close to winning from time to time, although these near victories were mostly dumb luck.

Seeko parried one of Keith’s strikes and countered with a blast of green flame. Keith waved them away and retaliated with pressurized balls of air, sending them flying into Seeko. Seeko evaded them and flung oranges and greens at Keith, who dodged just as easily. Keith elegantly moved closer as he dodged and, once in striking distance, knocked Seeko off his feet with his magically blunted blade.

Seeko rolled backward and recovered, swinging his blade in one hand with a flare of emerald in the other, hoping to score a hit. Keith evaded or blocked every attack and countered with his own swings. Seeko fell once again on the defensive, but Keith still landed hits on a leg and a shoulder. Seeko fell back several paces, warily watching Keith for his next move.

Seeko couldn’t focus. He furrowed his brows, staring and scowling at Keith. Why was he no stronger than before? He had two sparks. Again orange and green fumes were launched at Keith. Keith waved his free hand and the fire dissipated before it got to him, and at the same time launched a wall of air back at Seeko. Seeko lost his footing and Keith pressed the advantage. In a flash, he was at Seeko, swinging his blunted blade into the hero. Seeko grunted in pain as the blade connected an instant later, and soon he was rolling on the ground, wounded.

Why was he still losing to him? He was the hero.

“Some hero!”
Kerodesis laughed through the link.
“If I were in control, I would have defeated him with my teeth!”

Seeko ignored him, watching Keith as he slowly approached. In desperation, Seeko remembered one thing that could help him win this duel:
the necklace!
Seeko reached for the topaz necklace in his pocket and instantly felt the hidden power inside it.

He touched the necklace’s orange spark inside his mind. But, as before, he was repelled. It was right there! Why couldn’t he access it?

Lorissa interceded in Seeko’s thoughts:
“Because you are reaching for the wrong side!”

“Side?”

“Sparks have six sides, and each side is represented by an element! Reach for the dark side, hero!”

Seeko reassessed his assault on the spark. Side … Was it a real side on the spark or is it just how he envisioned it?
Whatever.
Seeko moved
below
the spark and tried again. Still he was repelled.
What?

Keith stood before Seeko and pointed his blade at Seeko’s neck. Seeko’s hand clutched tightly around the necklace, willing it to help him. He continued to assault it in different ways, but nothing helped.

“You lose again, Seeko,” Keith said.

But at that moment, Seeko realized something, learned something. The topaz spark flooded into his own, and Seeko manipulated the energy underneath Keith. Dark hands rose from underneath Keith, grabbing and pulling on him. Keith lost his grip on his sword as he struggled from the assault. He tried to augment his escape with his magic, but Seeko held firm. Seeko rose and summoned a blade from the dark energy of the necklace.

He pointed it at Keith’s neck. “You lose, Keith.”

Keith nodded once, breaking into a smile. Mori clapped from the sidelines while Kazuma looked down and away. Seeko and Keith returned to the camp.

Kazuma quickly finished preparing the meal. He had just finished skinning an animal that he had caught earlier and was cleaning his knife. “Had to resort to the magic of the demons, didn’t ya? Have to show us that you’re not human anymore.”

Seeko stared him straight in the eye. “I have to defeat the demons however I can. I have this power. Might as well use it.”

Kazuma grunted, put away his knife, and snapped his fingers. A fire started on the wood he had gathered, crimson red. He pulled a spit out of his pack and roasted the small animal. He did this entire thing silently, ignoring Seeko and company.

“I hope one day he forgives me. I miss his friendship.”

Kerodesis laughed.
“That’s what you get when you kill everyone he ever knew.”

Seeko ignored him.
“I should make it up to him somehow … but how?”

/ / / / /

Another few days passed. The company followed the Zan River to the coast, following a familiar route—the route that Seeko and Kazuma had taken when he had first arrived. Such different circumstances. Kazuma was so much different than before. But then … who could blame him?

Seeko had hatched a plan with Lorissa on how to repay Kazuma. Once they made camp, he put his plan into motion.

“Kazuma … uh, I want to try something,” Seeko said. He cleared his throat and found his confidence. “Summon a small flame where your missing finger is.”

Kazuma looked at him, eyes glazed. “Why?”

“I have an idea. Just do it.”

Kazuma reluctantly obeyed, and soon a small flame of red existed where his missing index finger was. Seeko placed a hand over Kazuma’s.

“Are you sure this will work, Lorissa?”

“Maybe,”
Lorissa responded.
“No harm trying, right?”

“I don’t want to kill Kazuma if this goes badly.”

“You won’t.”

Seeko reached into his split spark and pulled out dark energy. He manipulated the magic and sent it into Kazuma.

Kazuma jerked erratically, fighting the assault. “Are you trying to kill me? Finish the job?” He continued to resist.

“Stop fighting me! I’m trying to heal you!”

He paused before struggling again. “Heal me? With dark magic?”

“Yes! Just stop fighting!” Seeko sent more magic into Kazuma. Kazuma stopped moving, becoming rigid. Seeko sent the magic into the finger of flame, attempting to shapeshift it into a real finger.
Become a real finger become a real finger become a real finger,
he thought.

Kazuma screamed as the red fire turned black, opaque at first, then translucent. Blood flowed into the darkness. Skin weaved over the dark silhouette of the finger. Kazuma fell to his knees, still screaming, and Seeko lost his grip on him. Kazuma pulled his hand to his chest, cradling it. He glared at Seeko with malice in his eyes, shaking in pain.

“Look at your hand, Kazuma,” Seeko said a bit too calmly.

Kazuma’s gaze fell to his hand. He looked at it and saw a fully formed index finger. He tried to move the digit and it responded somewhat. He looked back to Seeko, tears in his eyes.