The journey to Nargul was uneventful, though it did come with the added surreality of having a long-distance conversation with the king of Drom. Gastard had given me a rough description of the man. He was no Godwod, a warrior, though well past his prime, with a beard impressive enough that Gastard felt the need to mention it specifically. ‘Like a wild bush,’ he’d said.
“Greetings, sorcerer.” Egard had a gravelly voice, and it sounded distant enough that I imagined he was holding the speaking stick as far away from his face as he could while still hearing me.
“Greetings, King Egard. Thank you for agreeing to speak with me.”
“Your man has done his best to convince me that you are not a demon.” Gastard had ridden out to meet Egard’s force, a huge risk to himself to give us this chance to negotiate.
“I’m not,” I said. “Some magic is tainted, but my power comes from Mizu, the goddess of the lillits.”
“So you say. All sorcery leads to the shadow. Only the light of Gotte can free us from its cloak of sin.”
This was going to be tough. “I appreciate your willingness, anyway.”
“Your man claims you are ready to surrender.” That was certainly not what Gastard would have told him.
“Henterfell and the border march are yours. I don’t want war between us. The Dark Lord is gone, and I want to turn Dargoth into a good country, free of demons.” Except for Astaroth, but we didn’t need to get into that. The phoenix was hanging back and out of sight.
“That is difficult to believe.”
“I don’t expect you to go out of your way to help me, and I know you have a cordon around Henterfell. All I want is for you to let my people go safely, and Gastard will hand the city over to you.”
“I want Godwod.”
“You can have him.”
“I want your oath that you will remain beyond the mountains. I want no traffic from your nation. No dark birds in the sky. I will take the sight of any strange beasts as a call to war.”
That was a bit much. It wasn’t as if I had control over all the monsters in the world. And people were probably going to claim they saw monsters even when all the demons and spawns were gone. It was an empty threat, regardless. Egard was never going to try to take an army across the wastes and into Dargoth. They hadn’t done that for the lillits, they wouldn’t do it because they saw black wings on the horizon.
“It’s my hope that, in the future, there can be peaceable relations between our nations.”
“The only peace I will accept is in your absence. You claim that you will rid the world of demons, but I hold the evidence of your tainted sorcery in my hand.”
“I’m willing to give you my word.” We could try working out proper diplomatic channels when things were settled in Dargoth. Gastard had gotten rid of the only two demons on that side of the mountains, and I wanted him back as quickly as possible.
I spoke with the king for a few minutes more, but there wasn’t much to be said. He wasn’t interested in developing a relationship between our lands. Magic was magic, in his eyes, and all of it was bad. Esmelda joined in the conversation with a few points about the manner and timing of our withdrawal from Henterfell.
There were Dargothian soldiers stationed there, as well as others who had crossed over and made their homes along the border march. They had families now, and anyone with an accent was likely to be ejected or worse once Egard had control of the region. Gastard would be bringing back a lot of people, which called for planning and supplies.
This business with the demonic monument would be long over by the time he returned, one way or another.
***
Boffin and Duke Keldorn had a welcoming party ready for us when we landed on the great keep in the center of the city. Kevin had converted the massive structure into a train, and though it no longer moved, it was still coiled up at the center of Nargul along a broad iron track.
My boots clinked on the steel roof of the car as Esmelda and Leto came around me to greet her father. Boffin wrapped Leto in a long embrace with only the mildest of resistance before following up with his daughter. Brenys came next, and Duke Keldorn stood a pace behind the lillits. Unobtrusive functionaries accompanied the ruddy man, and he had a gray fur cloak draped around his shoulders.
He bowed to me, and I was about to speak to him when Brenys poked me in my orichalcum-clad flank.
“It’s been too long,” she chided. “You can’t keep my grandnephew cooped up in that fortress all the time. You should have brought him to visit sooner.”
“They have a school now,” I said, “he keeps busy.”
Her only response to that was a derisive snort. Brenys hadn’t changed much from when I first met her. Though her wavy gray hair was cropped shorter than I remembered, she still wore a patchwork dress she had made herself. Instead of seeming like something a homeless person would wear, it managed to be a consummate example of her skill as a seamstress, incorporating half a dozen different materials into a coherent whole.
“We’re glad you brought him,” Boffin said, his gray eyes crinkling as he shook my hand. “We already have a room ready.”
Though I was eager to be on the road, or in the sky, rather, Keldor took us all to a high-end restaurant to catch up. I’d never been there before, but it was clearly frequented by the nobles of the city. I waved off the men and women in silks who tried to approach us. Boffin and Keldor had done a fine job governing Nargul, and I wanted no part of it.
We were sat at a long table in a private, candlelit room. Keldor took a place across from me, and after wine was served, he leaned forward to address me in a low tone.
“Has the time come? Are you here to lead the army north?”
“They won’t be coming with us,” I said. “At least not on this run?”
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“I assure you,” he said, a look of concern creasing his broad face, “they are ready. The men are happy enough to train and serve when the alternative is the mines.”
That made me frown. My plan for reforming the region's jurisprudence had met with resistance from the start, and I hadn’t been able to wipe out debt slavery so much as to make it more comfortable for those who got themselves into the system. There would always be nobles taking advantage of any given situation, and I couldn’t give civil issues my focus until we weren’t actively at war.
“It isn’t like it was,” he said, seeing my expression. “I had to replace half the magistrates, but corruption has consequences now. Innocent people are no longer bonded, and usury has been largely stamped out. But when prisoners refuse military service to pay their debts, there has to be somewhere for them to go.”
“I know,” I said. “I’m not here to debate about labor camps, and I’m glad that the army is prepared. There’s a situation in Grimwald that calls for immediate action, and we can’t afford to walk a force up there.”
“Then we send them behind you,” Keldorn made an open gesture with his hands. “Reinforcement and support.”
I glanced at Esmelda. She’d been deep in conversation with Brenys, but I well knew she was capable of tracking multiple conversations at once.
“What do you think?” I asked.
She smiled at Keldorn. “I think it’s an excellent suggestion, Duke. If all goes well, we will be back before the men can reach the border from here, but we will still have need of them.”
“We can’t send everyone,” I said. The last thing we wanted was to leave Nargul and its surrounding towns undefended.
“I’ll speak with the generals,” Keldorn said, his mouth quirking as he anticipated my worry. “The walls won’t go unmanned.”
The conversation turned to lighter things. Boffin was already well aware of where we were going, and he and Brenys engaged Leto with questions about his studies, though the only study he cared to speak of was what he did in the training yard with the garrison or Gastard. Music drifted in from the public room, the soft murmur of a woman’s voice layered with the quiet cries of strings.
Dinner was served, and I found it to be tasteless. A light soup, followed by pheasant and roasted vegetables. The others appeared to enjoy every dish, so it had to be me. I’d found less and less pleasure in food since returning from Bedlam.
“What’s wrong,” Esmelda asked, her words pitched low.
“Nothing,” I said. “I was just wondering what life will be like when there are no more demons.”
“More like this,” she said, nodding toward her father and our son. Leto was attempting to do a coin trick for Boffin, somewhat limited by the circumstance of doing it with a fork. He very nearly made it disappear, and Boffin acted as if the world had turned upside down before his eyes.
I smiled but didn’t feel it. Green boxes appeared and disappeared in my vision as the Discord System gave commentary on everything around me, the people, the food, everything. I dismissed them as soon as they manifested, though I couldn’t help but catch a few things.
Lillits…favored by Harmony…naturally resistant to evolution.
…a three-tined eating utensil capable of causing great harm to the unsuspecting.
Human, lacking in potential. Unworthy of anything beyond abject servitude.
“Pardon me, lord.” The judgemental text box vanished from behind the head of the server bowing to me. “A messenger is asking for you outside.”
“Who?” I asked, and the table quieted.
The mortal entity appeared uncomfortable. Small, weak. It was a natural state for someone like that. His obeisance was appropriate.
“A harpy, my lord. It did not give a name.”
“I’ll be right back,” I said, standing and moving around the server to leave the private space. Esmelda excused herself and followed me. So many eyes upon us in the public room, and all of their attention meant so little.
The dark-winged creature had perched upon the spire of a wrought iron fence just outside the restaurant.
Harpy
Entity Rank: F
Alignment: Discord
Affinity: Flesh
That was odd. The eye had never shown an alignment for the harpies before.
“What is it?” I asked.
“Fell tidings,” the harpy crooned. She wasn’t a member of a flock that I recognized, but she was old enough to speak English clearly. “The shadow spreads under the storm, and the mountain walks.”
“The mountain?” Esmelda asked, a quaver in her voice. “Do you mean our home?”
It’s caw was like a laugh. “No, Lady. The beastkin have called out to void, and void answers. Their gate burned like an emerald sun, and then went dark. For what came out, we have no name.”
Then it was already too late.
“Do you know what the Atlans are doing?” I asked.
The harpy didn’t have an update regarding Torgudai for us, but I could speak to him directly if he answered his stick. He hadn’t, on my last few attempts, but I doubted he kept it on his person at all times. Esmelda and I endeavored to pull a more distinct description from the bird, but it was a largely fruitless effort.
A walking mountain with flame and smoke spouting from its back. The demonic forces hadn’t left the safety of the storm yet, but I could assume that was the point of whatever titan they had summoned. Wherever it went, a cloud would follow, safeguarding the lesser entities from being banished by the sun. There were demons with it, though the harpy couldn’t give an exact number. Gundurgun, and maybe all of Grimwalkd, was on the march.
“You can join us when we leave,” I told the harpy. “We’ll be in the air soon.”
It nodded in response, its yellow eyes alight, before taking wing.
“It can’t be moving quickly,” Esmelda said. “Should we return and form a different plan? Even wait for Gastard?”
The street wasn’t busy, and I barely noted the people who saluted or bowed as they passed by the other side of the fence. Nargul was hiding somewhere to be out of the sun, but if we left now, he would still find us when night came. His bond with me had only gotten stronger since returning to life.
“We brought enough bombs to break their monument. What if we broke their cauldron instead? The storm would clear, and they would be stuck sheltering around their titan.”
“The cauldron is in their stronghold, isn’t it?” Esmelda looked skeptical. “How well is it defended?”
“Can’t really know,” I shrugged. “They went through the trouble of summoning a greater entity though, so that had to cost them. The majority of their forces, and probably their demons as well, are moving away from Gundurgon. It’s as good a shot as we’ll ever have apart from actually killing all of them first.”
Esmelda frowned, thinking deeply, before coming to a decision.
“Nowhere is safe until this is finished,” she said. “The new monster will call for a new strategy, but we can move swiftly enough to break their hold on Grimwald before returning to Mount Doom.” Her jaw firmed. “Let us break it then.”