Hell has seen better days.
The thought haunted Amarena as she fell into the mindless activity of placing the beacons.
Run. Place. Wait for Orby. Grab the next beacon. Run. Place...
Beacon after beacon.
Thousands.
Fucking thousands.
As fast as she could place them.
She had no idea when her task would be complete, but it was hers.
Enemy or not, Kiryu’s hold over Kir’s body ant he had a hostage she would never kill, and since she had no choice but to play along, she decided she would accomplish her task as swiftly as possible...
If only her mana would hold out as strongly as her will.
She didn’t know how much ti had passed, but she sensed it had to have been days at least. When she started to feel her limits, she jamd the most recent beacon into her sidepouch and set her path toward the three Aytherians and their spirit.
Finding their tracks was easy, and she found the three at the foothills of the mountains she’d sent them toward, doing sothing stupid.
"I wouldn’t poke that if I were you," Amarana said as she ca to a halt, releasing Orby.
"You’re back," the human boy said.
"Lag, right?"
"It’s Lugh."
"Whatever. That’s a chrysalis. Probably for a dromorne. I think you call them Bloodshrikes. If you crack it open, they explode, and the bone shards can go through armor."
"Chrysalis..." Ann said. "So it’s a bug?"
"No, it’s a bird. One that sounds like... what are those long-necked birds with the black heads on Ayther? The ones that live on lakes."
"Ducks?" Lugh guessed.
"Yeah, those. But not as good for eating, unless you really like bones."
"Birds don’t tamorphose like bugs," Ann argued.
"They do on Hell. Most creatures do. All that mana that it’s stored up is helping it evolve. Once they’re done, they’ll flock and frenzy. Probably won’t hatch until after this all settles down, though." Amarena gestured vaguely at the sky, which was the sa grey shroud it had been since they arrived.
"We’ve passed hundreds of these..." Keiya said.
Amarena shrugged. "I’m tired. Did you find a place worth resting in?"
"We thought we saw a light that way." Lugh pointed further up the hills, then rubbed at the stubble on his chin. "We’ve been seeing glimrs here and there, but nothing definite."
"Could be death wisps," Amarena grunted. "Or deathcl-"
"Is everything in Hell nad after dying or murder or blood?" Lugh interrupted.
"By your people, yeah," Amarena answered crankily. "Hell isn’t all lush and vibrant like Ayther in case you haven’t noticed. What lives here needs mana, and guess what the best sources of mana are?"
"People," Keiya answered.
"That’s right," Rena said. "People are the only ones around here that grow their mana. The animals use and conserve what they get, and good luck finding one that lasts long enough to beco a spirit before it becos everything else’s snack." She cast a fearso gaze at Nimfy, eliciting a terrified squeak. "I’m surprised you haven’t been attacked already."
As if on cue, a bellowing roar issued from nearby.
Ann groaned. "Why’d you have to go and say it? We just got away from that thing."
"We were attacked," Lugh said, "but we managed to escape a few hours ago."
"And now it’s back," his sister concluded for him.
The three Aytherians started swearing as the beast, which Amarena was too tired to rember the na of, charged. Only, a mont later it stopped as Amarena threw Orby right into its face, leaving a circular indent of pale, pink flesh where its copious grey hide had been, and taking off its paired facial horns down to what had to be a very sensitive core as its bellow turned to shrieks of pain.
As it fled, Amarena finally recalled that it could have been an ash horn or a quake bull. Either way, it was- "Highly territorial, those," Amarena said. "But good eating if you manage to get through the hide." Orby floated back to its usual distance next to her. "Probably."
"Speaking of food, we’re starting to run a bit low," Kaena said.
"Aren’t you a druid or sothing? Can’t you make more?" Amarena asked.
"I’m an alchemist, actually. I an, I could make a soybean sprout, but I’m not that attuned with plants..." the elf poked her fingers together shyly. "Besides, there’s nothing to grow here, and I didn’t think we’d be here for this long."
"We only just got here." Amarena raised an eyebrow.
"Miss Amarena, we’ve been here for at least a week," Ann said, checking a tiny magic device she extracted from her pocket.
Amarena winced. She really had lost track of ti. "Ah crap. Orby" - the orb chirped twice - "make loaves of bread for those three."
To Amarena’s surprise, the orb actually floated over to the three Aytherians before dropping a fresh loaf of wheat bread into each of their hands.
"It makes bread?! This is revolutionary!" Kaena jittered with excitent and bit into her loaf. "Oh, and it’s so rich in mana... Did you make Orby?"
"Do I look like an artificer? It was made by..." Amarena paused for just a mont. Kir’s situation with Kiryu seed like sothing very personal. "...Kir."
"How is Kir?" Ann asked. "You didn’t say much about him before you started placing the beacons."
"He was... not himself the last ti I saw him. But I’m sure he’ll wind up okay," Amarena answered. "In any case, I guess I should focus on recovering now. Orby, make a large loaf of bread."
*
Ann watched as Amarena inhaled her loaf before the four of them walked together around the hills leading to the mountain. About an hour after they started, Amarena pointed towards what had looked to Ann like a bunch of grey lumps.
"There. Looks like a small village," the demoness said.
"How can you tell?" Lugh asked.
"Bunch of rounded hills on top of a stone mountain. ans ashfalls had sothing to grab onto, so no one was around to clean up." Amarena spoke as if these were re facts of life.
Once they finished the climb, they found the village exactly as Amarena had described. Most of the buildings were piled high with ash, and the well at the center was practically clogged with the stuff, even with its enclosure.
A few of the buildings had doors exposed enough to get into - all made from slabs of magic-shaped stone. After a brief search, Amarena brute-forced her way into the largest structure.
"This is a good place to set up camp. Probably the head demon’s house."
They decided the village would make a good base for searching the surrounding mountainside, with the many paths in and out. They built up a good stash of supplies with Orby, mostly bread and water for food, before getting comfortable.
As they rested, Ann asked a few more questions about demonic society. According to Amarena, small villages like this tended to congregate around a single strong demon. The cities tended to house the most demons, but mutual feeding tended to equalize the mana rather than allow for significant growth in power or population.
A village could make stronger individual demons, especially if they were successful enough in preying on local monsters or other demons. But whenever a Heavenswar occurred, the natural portals and the access they granted to Ayther were both a matter of survival and growth for demons at large.
Ann was a bit surprised to find Lugh listening and asking questions. Her brother had grown better with people, and especially demonkin, since making the commitnt years ago, but he still had so ingrained habits born of his forr prejudices. Amarena, however, consistently corrected his misconceptions and even engaged him in so light sparring.
When it was ti for the demoness to resu her task, Ann asked to speak alone with her for a mont.
"I wanted to thank you for helping my brother," Ann said.
Amarena shrugged. "I take it you’re more interested in why I helped him?"
"I would be lying if I said I wasn’t curious."
Amarena looked up at the sky. "He reminds of myself. Soone with a lot of anger and nowhere to put it. While we sparred, I sensed it a bit, and if he were to be converted, he’d probably make for a decent wrathkin."
Ann scratched at her elbow awkwardly, vaguely rembering that so demonkin were made instead of born. She didn’t want to think of her brother as becoming one, though. "He’s been a lot better with his anger ever since he and Kir fought it out a few years ago."
"He told about that. I told him about being a Valrian Knight. Even shared so of Kir’s strange philosophy... but I guess it’s not so strange when you think about it."
"I don’t think Kir and I ever talked about philosophy. We grew up in the sa village..." and yet he never thought to tell he was alive and posing as a professor... Part of Ann felt jealous of the demon in front of her, but if she had to confess, Ann had been more interested in Kaena - her girlfriend and lover - than anything else but her studies and cooking.
"’The more you give, the more you receive,’ he said to once. ’True justice requires equality.’" Amarena chuckled. "Very idealistic. He spoke of wanting to turn Norneau into a place where no one had to worry for the necessities."
"Everyone can eat if they go to the druids," Ann said.
"Yes, but he ant shelter and clothes as well. Work, too. Hmm... what was it he also said? "From each according to their ability...’"
"To each according to their need." Smiling, Ann finished the quote. She rembered him confronting Princess Lapins Van Montmorency with those very words, so long ago. "Thank you for, um, talking with ."
Amarena nodded, the athyst-like horn glistening on her forehead.
"I’ll be back in another week, probably. Can’t see Kir’s future if there aren’t any people around."
With a crack of collapsing air, Amarena returned to her task.
Her duty. To make sure enough of the world survived to see if Kir could give them the future he desired.
And the more she thought, the more Ann realised she wanted to see it too.
Reviews
All reviews (0)