Original Stories Fan Fiction ❯ Jigsaw ❯ Kao ( Chapter 5 )

CHAPTER FIVE

"'Demons are surprisingly sensitive creatures; this does not mean it is inappropriate to politely decline any invitations from one delivered with a mischievous chuckle."
-- Urph Nilbottom, "101 Phrases that Will Get You Killed"

 

Tione wrapped her arms around her, rubbing her upper arms to keep warm. “Damn! It's freezing!” she announced as she waited for her companions to follow. It had been chilly when they first arrived in the clouds. Now that the sun had set she could hardly stand it.

Geddon, Shani, and then Aleric could soon be seen exiting the tunnel. There were no lights on the outside of the castle, and Tione could just barely make out their faces.

“Huh... How do we make it back to the jellybeanstalk in all this dark?” Aleric asked, appearing to be unaffected by the cold.

Geddon looked out over the expanse of white clouds, now colored a frigid dark blue-gray. “Shani,” he said.

“Naylo's Darkvision would work.," Shani replied eagerly. "It's a level one spell that allows people to see in the dark.” He nodded, sure of himself. Then his blue eyes seemed to light up momentarily. “And the level two spell, Sphere of Heat could be used to take care of this cold.”

Geddon nodded. “Shani, I'm proud of you. Now, could you give each of us a casting of Darkvision while I take care of the heat?”

Geddon spread his arms, his hands turned upward. “Serr Relphus Katra!”

An orange light centered on Geddon's belt buckle radiated outward, almost like a gust of wind, and disappeared, replaced by a pleasant feeling of warmth as from a nearby fire. Tione almost missed the light; it dissipated quickly. It would definitely be useful to have a magic user traveling with them. Tione knew almost nothing about magic other than that spells were ways to call the force of magic that existed everywhere to do certain tasks. Sensing her back was cold, she stepped closer to Geddon and became completely encased in the Sphere of Heat.

“Now,” Geddon said, “as long as you stay close to me, you should be warm enough. Shani? How are you doing?”

“I just remembered the incantation!” Shani said. With a simple gesture, he recited, “Yehl Patra Despa!” He put his arms down, and looked out towards the horizon. “Seems to have worked just fine,” he said. “Let me cast it on the rest of you, now.” The boy went around to Tione, Geddon and Aleric, casting the same spell on each of them.

When Tione was hit with the spell, the darkness gradually lifted until it was almost as if the sun had risen. However, looking up, she could see a gibbous moon shining brightly above, along with a scattering of stars. She'd never seen the stars this clearly before. Because of the bright light in her mind's eye, she could actually see the shadows cast by the moon. “All right, everyone. Let's keep moving. We have to find that jellybeanstalk so we can get back down to the ground.”

They soon began walking in the direction of the front of the castle, where they had come from. Before very long at all, Geddon spoke.

Geddon turned to Tione with regal poise. “Tione… Who do we have left to locate?”

Tione opened her book to the back of the front cover and scanned the second list for just a moment before replying. “The descendents of Ga Jallen, Bright Blue and Bryce Kyndrel. Know any of them?”

Geddon put a hand to his angular chin and thought. Tione wasn't in suspense as to whether they had any clues for long. “Ga Jallen… he is a very old elf, a prized alumnus of the Sela magic academy, and an accomplished mage. After he graduated he became a writer.”

“He wrote How to Turn a Spoon into a Sex Toy,” Shani added. “Have you by any chance—“

“No, I haven't!” Tione interrupted, and sighed. That's why Ga Jallen sounded familiar.

Geddon cleared his throat. “As for descendants, I know of one son, and two grandsons. I've seen one of them around the academy quite often. He's a level four magician named Xerei..."

"But he's known around the campus as "The White Tiger" for his white hair and calm, cool attitude," Shani added. "He's very popular, but he doesn't seem to care about any of that. And his brother…” He paused. “Oh…”

“What? What is it?” Tione asked.

“I'm just hoping it isn't his grandsons that we have to locate. Xerei's brother, Kao was expelled from the Sela Academy of Magic some time ago for tampering with forbidden magic. Since then, there's been no sign of him anywhere.”

“Forbidden magic?” Tione asked. “You mean… spells you're not allowed to use or something?”

“Precisely!” Geddon said, raising his voice. His eyes narrowed. “To be forbidden by the Council of Magic, a spell must cause unnecessary pain or distress. Also, most spells that alter the free will of a target or spread feelings of evil are very much forbidden. Some spells are just too dangerous or powerful for just anyone to learn to use.”

Tione thought about this. Spells so horrible that no one is allowed to cast them? Not even the wisest and most powerful of mages? She knew there were always exceptions; nothing was so black and white. “And people caught using these spells are just kicked out? Isn't that kind of irresponsible?”

Geddon shook his head defiantly. “Not at all! Someone expelled from the Magic Academy has their link to the magical forces of Jigsaw disabled. If that link is disabled, no magic can be cast, unless they find a way to repair it. Doing so is exceedingly difficult.”

“I see…” said Tione. What Geddon said made sense, but what would a kingdom feel about a bashful king who blushed whenever someone paid attention to him? Still, Geddon was friendly enough.

“Hmm. Uhh…” Aleric murmured at that time.

“Spit it, Mister Eloquent. What's on your mind?”

“Does anybody think we should have come to the jellybeanstalk by now? Or at least been able to see it?”

“Perhaps,” Geddon said. “Er, Aleric… could it have disappeared somehow?”

“Well, I dunno,” Aleric said. “I may know a lot about Jigsaw and everything in it, but I never climbed a beanstalk before.”

“Some hero you are,” Tione muttered.

“Listen, Hot Stuff,” Aleric said, more hurt than angry, “I don't need to be put down by a girl who's never left the little village she was born in!”

“What did you call me?”

Aleric crossed his arms. “I'll call you whatever I want, Fancybuns.”

Tione clenched her fist around her spoon. “You want a beating, Blondie?”

“It's gone!” Geddon interjected. He turned soberly to his friends. “Everyone, the jellybeanstalk is gone.”

Tione swiveled her head to face Geddon. “What?”

“Look. The hole where it pierced the cloud layer is still here, but the stalk itself is gone. It's been cut down, or erased, or moved… something. Whatever happened to it, it was here, but now it isn't.”

“A- Are we stuck up here?” Tione asked, suddenly feeling butterflies tickling her insides. What was the rest of the cloud world like? Were there other people up there? Would they be able to find another jellybeanstalk and climb back down eventually? Then, a thought struck her: Why was the stalk gone in the first place? Geddon interrupted her thoughts.

“We can find a way down… or rather, we can make one.” He glanced seriously at his friends. “This spell is very difficult; I will need to concentrate.” Geddon closed his eyes and thrust his arms, hands spread, out at his sides. The thin mist of fog at his feet began to stir lazily in a circular motion around him, and Tione could hear a distant wing howling. “Sen Madra! Lega Reigas!”

The clouds at Geddon's feet swirled around him, exploding upward as his cloak blew upward to make way for the immaculate feathered wings that materialized on his back. The fog settled again, and Geddon unfolded the wings with a flourish, eyes still closed. Once they were unfurled, they were maybe ten feet tall with a wingspan of twenty feet. He sighed as if casting the spell had taken a lot of effort; it looked like it had.

Tione's eyes widened. This was what magic was all about!

Geddon opened his eyes and turned, the feathers forming an angelic frame around him, the moon's light framing the feathery appendages in a cool glow. Coupled with them, his androgynous elven beauty was overwhelming. “Pardon their size. They have to be large enough to support the weight of a person.”

“They're nice and all,” Aleric said, just barely resisting reaching out to feel the white plumage. “Got enough to share with all of us?”

Geddon looked regretful, the bright pink still not having lifted from his cheeks. “I can carry one of you. I have enough power to cast the spell once more before I shall have to rest.” He folded his wings and turned to, to Tione's disappointment, Aleric. “You're the strongest of all of us. Would you mind?”

Aleric looked at the wings again and shrugged. “I guess not.”

Tione frowned. She had wanted to experience the spell, but Geddon was right; Tione could never carry Aleric, and even Shani would be a strain. Still, Aleric could have at least shown some enthusiasm. His acting so unimpressed by the whole thing made it seem like a waste. At least the wings suited Geddon. Aleric with angel's wings would just look more awkward than a dwarf ballroom dancing.

“All right,” Geddon said. “I'm going to cast the spell, then we need to hurry down. These wings don't last forever. In fact, I believe we only have about twenty minutes remaining until they disappear.”

“Okay, then…” Aleric said. Tione noticed Aleric tucking the puppy into his satchel; there was plenty of room with his rope having been left behind.

Geddon took a slow breath and made the same gesture as before. “Sen Madra! Lega--!” Suddenly, he stopped casting the spell with a terrified yelp, and Tione knew why. Suddenly, the floor of clouds began to give way, and Tione felt herself sinking.

“Shani!” Geddon grabbed hold of his apprentice with both arms and unfolded his wings once more and flapped them once, just before Tione and Aleric began to fall through the clouds.

Tione grabbed at the layer of clouds as she sank, but they were no longer solid enough; her hands went straight through them. Her feet met with a frigid gust of wind as she began to fall out of Geddon's Sphere of Heat. Below her, she could feel gusting winds and pounding rain. Thunder roared around her. She looked up at Geddon falling away from them, kept aloft by the wings, Shani clinging tightly to him. “Geddon!”

“Don't panic!” Geddon cried out, even as a bit of color drained from his already pale face. “Hang on, Shani!” Geddon dove downward through the storm toward his falling companions.

Tione never took her eyes off the winged elf approaching her, except when black storm clouds obscured him. Occasionally a flash of blue or white was lit up by the furious lightning. He was actually very good at flying with them; perhaps he'd practiced.

“Shani, hang on to me! I'm going to try casting the spell again!” Geddon called to the boy clutching at his torso. He shifted his position so that he could fly straight down and keep up with Tione and Aleric. His face began to be pelted by rain, and the band holding his hair back was blown away; his long brown hair streamed behind him.

Finally he was at Aleric's side. Aleric reached out his arm, barely straining to grasp Geddon's tunic. “Get ready! You have to be prepared or you'll be tossed by the wind! Sen Madra! Lega Reigas!”

Immediately after the spell was cast, Geddon held Shani close again. Tione, a few feet away, watched as a sphere of rain burst outward, framed by whirling storm clouds as white wings sprouted from the still falling Aleric's back.

Just as a gust of wind whipped Tione's soaking hair over her face, she heard Aleric scream.

“Aleric, fly!” Geddon shouted, barely audible in the whistling wind.

Tione grabbed her soaking hair and shook it behind her, to see Aleric being tossed by the wind. His wings had been seized by the monstrous wind and Aleric was being pulled through the storm by them. She watched as Aleric managed to right himself in the air. Gradually, they began to flap and he was able to make his way back to the group.

The ground was fast approaching. She utterly refused to end up a stain on the roof of the monumental stone building that could now be seen, even through the stinging rain. Tione reached out her hand. “Aleric!”

Aleric, several yards away, looked over in her direction. “Hold out your hand!”

Tione thrust her hand toward him, just as the wind blew her hair into her face again, blinding her. In a panic, Tione screamed, so frightened that she was unsure of the words. They were partially drowned out by the wind.

“Gotcha!” Tione felt Aleric's strong hands close around her arm, and a jarring tug rushed down to her shoulder. Barely keeping himself steady, he pulled Tione up enough so that she could hold on to him. His soaked clothes clung to his body where they weren't whipping in the wind. With a free hand, Aleric guided the hair out of her eyes. “Hey… You…” The rest of his words were drowned out.

Geddon caught up with Tione and Aleric, struggling to keep himself still in the wind. “Let's find some shelter!” he cried, taking a hand off Shani long enough to point down to the ground. “That building down there! Let's try to aim for that!” Geddon reinforced his grip on Shani and began to once again fly downward.

Aleric took a moment to locate the structure Geddon spoke of, and then began to follow him down. Tione felt a pulse of wind each time the feathered wings came down around her, occasionally losing a feather to the storm. She craned her head to watch the wings move. Underneath the layer of rain-tattered down, powerful muscles pumped.

“Is it hard?” Tione asked, feeling awkward in Aleric's grip. Below, the treetops were approaching. They had to be barely over a hundred feet above the ground now.

“What? Putting up with you?” Aleric said, chuckling to himself.

“No!” Tione raised her hand to hit him, but thought better of it. “I'm gonna hit you once we land! I meant… is it hard to …”

“To fly? No,” Aleric said. “It's actually best if you don't concentrate too hard… y'know… just let it happen…”

Tione felt Aleric's grip shift until his right hand rested on her left breast. “You jerk!” she yelled, twisting. “Just when I - you letch! Pervert! Playboy! I'm gonna—”

“Whoa, hey!” Aleric shouted. “Don't or I might lose my grip!” He shifted his hand away. “There, happy? I'm sorry.”

“No, I'm not!” Tione retorted. After a pause, she muttered, “Flying can't be hard if you can do it… moron…” That couldn't have been an accident, and she was still trapped in Aleric's arms. Thankfully, the ground was approaching quickly.

A minute later Geddon landed, somewhat clumsily, on the soaked ground, his boots sinking into an inch of mud. With a sigh of relief he set Shani back on the ground and folded his wings up.

“Thank the gods,” he sighed. “Shani, you can let go now.”

Aleric, still holding onto Tione, made his way through the treetops before finally emerging below the canopy. He spotted Geddon and Shani a few yards off, and waved. “Hey!” Flapping gently, he lowered himself toward the ground. “There… that wasn't too hard…” he muttered.

Tione kept her eyes on the ground. The wind and rain had chilled her profoundly, and her teeth were now chattering and she clung to Aleric for warmth, despite her feelings. Suddenly, she felt herself falling. Her scream was cut short when she hit the muddy ground, followed by Aleric, just beside her.

The mud had managed to splatter up to the collar of her dress, with flecks on her cheeks and neck. Her hands and her legs up to her knees were completely caked in runny mud. “Oh…” Tione groaned. “That hurt…”

Aleric stumbled to his feet in the slick mud, equally soaked and dirtied. “I can't believe we made it in one piece…” he panted. Smiling down at Tione, he held out his dirty hand. “Hey,” he chuckled. “Now you really do have something on your face!”

She struggled to rise again; she had landed on her lower legs and palms. “Aleric… Aleric, you idiot!”

“It's not his fault,” Geddon said, approaching them out of the blowing rain and branches struggling at their trees as if trying to escape the storm. “I'm afraid the spell wore off. Casting the same spell a second time must have reduced its duration.”

She limped over to Aleric. Her ankle was killing her, having taken the first brunt of the fall. “I owe you this…” She drew back her hand and delivered a stinging slap to Aleric's left cheek, leaving a muddy print on his face.

Aleric caught Tione's wrist. “I just saved your life, you bitch!” He screamed over a roll of thunder. He wiped a stream of rain off of his face.

Tione pulled her wrist back. “Next time, I—”

She was cut short with an earsplitting crack; a bolt of lightning pierced the air not fifty feet away. Even through the shroud of trees tossed by the wind, they could see the bolt strike a tree, which quickly caught fire in the pouring rain. With a groan, the tree fell to the forest floor, crashing through the treetops with a defeated groan and raining leaves and branches down on Tione and Aleric.

“Come on, you two!” Geddon asserted. “We need to get inside!” He ran in the direction of the stone building, followed by Shani. Tione and Aleric soon followed.

As they approached their intended shelter, Geddon ran his hands along the tall stone doors, which stood at least twice as tall as Aleric. Tione limped up the stone stairs, marveling at the carvings in the massive doors, obscured where deep green moss clung to the wet stone.

“It looks like a temple,” he said. “That's good. Tione, you look hurt. Perhaps there's a cleric inside.” He pushed open the doors, which swung open with surprising ease with the grinding of stone against stone. The stone slabs swung backward and hit the wall of a dimly lit hallway, sending a booming echo down its length. Ornate carvings decorated the walls. “Let's proceed,” Geddon said, and stepped over the threshold.

As Tione followed him, a warm wind blew over her like hot breath. It wasn't a pleasant warmth, but a stagnant, uncomfortable one, as if she had just felt heat radiating from hell itself. “What kind of temple is this?”

Geddon looked around, and glanced on the carvings on the wall. “Oh,” he shuddered in dismay. “I don't believe we're in the temple of a good god. Look at these.”

Tione turned her head to see what the carvings depicted: graphic pictures of violence and suffering. One seemed to show a person suspended by strings attached to needles that were piercing his skin. Even though the carving was small, it was clear that the victim's face was gaping, stretched with pain. Another picture showed a bat-winged man holding a length of chain above his head as if to whip his body, already covered in gashes. Both sides of the hallway stretched out before her, depicting any kind of evil she could imagine. “Maybe we shouldn't stay here…”

“Look,” Geddon whispered, pointing at the wall. “These have been vandalized.”

Tione looked closer. It was apparent that the deep, angry gashes and scratches in the wall weren't from the wear of time at all. Besides these, there were burn marks and places where fist-sized chunks of the stone wall seemed to have been blown away.

“That's it,” Aleric said. “Let's go.” He turned around to open the doors again, but they failed to move. He pushed harder. “I can't open them!”

“We're trapped in here?” Shani whimpered. “This place is more horrible than the academy cafeteria! Granted, the smell is more `brimstone and rot' than `sour milk and rot,'”

“It's okay,” Geddon assured us. “Don't… panic.”

Shani nodded. “Right… Geddon, as long as you're here, I'm fine.”

“Hey…” Tione murmured as soft as she could. “Be quiet… I hear voices.”

The others strained to hear the voices Tione spoke of. Soon, they could hear two male voices coming from the end of the hall talking in a hushed tone. Once they looked closely, they noticed two distant figures in the middle of a room that the corridor appeared to open up into. They watched them genuflect to the rough stone floor.

“The adviser and general to Demon Queen Émigré… You must have traveled far,” the booming voice said, filling the room and hallway with its presence. “What is your business with me?”

One of the men rose to his feet. From what Tione could make out, he had short silvery hair, and was clothed in a blood red vest, black pants and gold boots and gauntlets. He wore sturdy armor on his shoulders, arms and legs that appeared to be a consuming black, lined with gold. She also thought she could make out what looked to be elven ears, but longer and narrower. He carried a large formidable-looking scythe that cast a long shadow in the unnatural red light of the temple. Most notably, growing from his back were six smooth, silvery tentacles that moved about lazily in a motion reminding Tione of a cat's tail. “We have not heard from you in more than forty common years,” the man said in a deep baritone. “You must be aware of what approaches.”

The second man stood up. This man was a bit shorter than the first and possessed long, silky black hair that took on a blood red sheen in the light. Everything else was concealed by a black cape worn under a dark blue shoulder cape. “If you'll pardon our insolence,” he said, putting a fist on his hip, “we demons are growing suspicious of your intentions.”

“Demons…” Geddon whispered. Immediately images flooded Tione's mind as to what might happen if they were seen. Then, observing the carvings on the wall once more, she realized she didn't need mental images.

“Five hundred years ago, you betrayed us. Fifty years ago you did not come to our aid,” the demon in red said assertively, yet with an edge of humbleness. “Do you intend to leave us to the wrath of the Silver Tribe again?”

The voice let out a long sigh, and replied, “I am a god, Demon Mynarik. While you and I are connected, we do not depend on one another. My actions do not concern you.”

“We demons are born of and live by evil,” the demon in black said, shifting his weight to one foot. “You govern that evil. Don't neglect your children a third time.”

Mynarik huffed, and muttered, “You weren't born a demon, Mongrel.”

His companion turned. “Would you get off that?!”

The god's omnipresent voice cleared its voice in annoyance. “Is that how you regard me?” the voice interrupted.

“The marks on these walls tell how we regard you!” the demon in black continued.

The voice chuckled. “Your people thrive on evil, yet you can't understand evil if it is inflicted upon yourselves?”

The demon in black bowed his head bitterly. “Utaraki Butra…”

Mynarik turned to glare at the other demon. “Kao! Idiot!”

“Aegis Guybrim!” The incantation rose to an angry roar, and the demon raised his arm toward the ceiling, his other clenched angrily at his waist. With a spine-crumbling rumble the entrance to the room was blocked by an explosion as the stone tiles of the floor were blown upwards, to fall back down in crumbling pieces. The sound of rock crashing to the floor could be heard blasted into Tione's ears, and by the time the smoke cleared, the two demons had disappeared completely.

“What just happened?” whispered Tione. What they'd just seen seemed almost like a dream, but the dust in the air and the awkward piles of debris were completely real.

Geddon coughed. “I'm… not sure…” replied the prince.

“I have more visitors.” The return of the booming voice made Tione jump. “Proceed into the main chamber of Oh. Prepare yourself—I am in a poor mood.”

“We can't!” Aleric whispered.

“We have no choice,” Tione replied, taking steps forward down the corridor. As she walked forward, more and more of the chamber ahead was revealed. She could now make out a massive altar made of ash-gray stone at the far end, shadowed by a canopy of ragged black silk. The carvings were much larger in the main chamber—the people portrayed were life size, giving a chilling element of realism to the horrific depictions of suffering. Like in the corridor Tione was emerging from, the entire room, especially the carvings were vandalized. The altar had been smeared with several unknown substances, especially blood. Numerous tiles from the concentric circular pattern were missing from the floor, and pieces of rock ranging from small stones to boulders were scattered about the room. Everywhere on the walls, it was clear that pieces had been blown away with magic; most of the holes were surrounded by scorch marks.

“You wished to seek shelter from the storm in my temple, did you?” asked the voice of Oh.

“Um… sorry?” Aleric said, bowing.

“Don't bow to evil gods!” Tione hissed, pulling him back up by his collar.

“You, of all people,” Oh continued, “wish to use my home as protection.”

“We meant no offense!” Geddon insisted.

“I find it both a mockery of all I stand for and an insult to my intelligence. I think you need to die right here.”

“Really?” Aleric asked. “I disagree.”

"Indeed," Shani added. "Here we have the typical confusion of 'want' and 'need.'"

“DIE!” Oh's voice roared. At this, the top of the gray altar at the back of the room began to bleed. Blood flowed down its sides and collected into streams and puddles on the floor. From out of the blood emerged a lump of black scales. As it stretched out, destroying the silk canopy above it, Tione realized that it was a dragon, almost three times as tall as any of them. It let out a terrible high-pitched roar as it stepped down off the altar. As it approached, the odor of blood overwhelmed them, and with every step, dark crimson blood welled up from the rock floors under its feet, its claws scratching the tiled floor beneath them.

“D—dragon!” Aleric screamed. “Oh Sofia, don't let it near me!” He stumbled backward, lost his footing and landed on his bottom.

“It's a blood dragon…” Geddon gasped.

“Really,” Tione said. “I thought it was a lollipop dragon. Shows how much I know.”

Geddon took a deep wavering breath. “I'll have to fight it!” His face was almost void of any color. “Ah protect me!” He folded his hands. “Sella Vespa Selana!”

A golden light appeared around Geddon. The entire temple rumbled and dust was stirred into the air. Tiny pebbles fell from the ceiling for a few seconds before the light sputtered and died.

“Holy magic won't help you,” Oh said. “I no longer have time to deal with you. I'll leave it up to you four to die without making too much of a mess.”

The dragon roared once again, and charged toward Geddon, its red-spiked tail waving and its mouth opened wide. However, as it neared Geddon, it was propelled backward in a flash of white light.

“Sella Vespa! Hephi!” Geddon raised his hand. In a shimmering shower of golden sparks, an immaculate white staff appeared in his hand, adorned with streaming white ribbons, quartz spikes emerging from its sides, white feathers and a gold halo floating above it. “Holy staff!” Grasping the staff in both hands, he charged at the dragon, the golden aura around him discharging rays of holy light that knocked it further back. “Shani! Cast a protection spell!”

Shani nodded. “Er… right!” He pointed both his index fingers at the dragon. “Sella Vespa Jiva!” For a moment, his hands radiated holy white light, but nothing more happened. “Damn!”

As Geddon continued to fight the blood dragon, Tione drew back and watched, helpless. Every time the dragon came close to him, the golden aura seemed to deal damage to it—dark scales chipped away and blood streamed down its sides. The pointed end of the staff Geddon summoned was now stained with dark red blood.

The dragon, which was now bleeding in several places but didn't appear to be greatly injured, emitted a purring sound from the depths of its maw that made Tione's stomach tingle. She suddenly felt so horrified that she turned and ran back into the corridor toward the sealed door, unable even to turn back when she heard Geddon scream, followed by a dull thump. It was as if death itself was chasing her.

As she approached the end of the corridor, she noticed something puzzling: The doors they had come in through now had a huge hole blown through them. A pile of rubble lay at the bottom of the stone doors. As she approached to be sure what she saw was real, she could feel the wind and the rain from the now dying storm hitting her face.

The commotion coming from the main chamber was getting louder—it echoed in her ears like she had never left the chamber. Judging by the voices, Shani had joined in the melee.

“Shani…” Tione could hear Geddon groan. “No…”

Terrified of what she might see if she went back into the room, she paused for a second. What was happening to the others? Would she die if she tried being heroic? How many of them would die if she didn't? Tione turned around and crept back into the main chamber, just in time to see Aleric backing out of it.

“Be courageous… be courageous… out the door!” he cried, turning and running for the door.

Tione scanned the battlefield. The dragon was still in the middle of the room, even more bloodied than before. Geddon was seated against the far wall, unconscious and looking seriously hurt, with Shani standing over him.

“Shani! Door's open! Distract it while I take care of Geddon!” she said as quickly as she could while still being understandable. She tossed the young magician her spoon and knelt next to Geddon.

Shani caught the utensil in his right hand. “Nice of you to join us! Hurry!”

Tione put one arm behind the prince's back and another at the back of his knees, and slowly lifted upward. It appeared the dragon's jaws had clamped down on Geddon's right shoulder and arm, and blood welled up from under his white coat. He had a delicate build; she managed to lift him enough to carry him into the corridor, his boots dragging on the dusty floor. Once in the corridor, she could see that Aleric was already outside.

“Aleric!” she cried. “Come and help me!” She wasn't sure how much longer she could carry the injured prince. Should she fail, she would be responsible for the death of the kingdom's heir; not a good record for a fledgling heroine.

Without a word, Aleric climbed through the hole in the doors and jogged over to where Tione was standing, unable to take another step. “Here.” He easily took Geddon in his arms as the elf began to awaken and discover the pain he was in with a gasp.

“Shani!” Tione's voice echoed out back where she'd come; the dragon hissed as if in response. “Come on!” She turned back. Aleric was already back out the door. Tione assumed that he had managed to get Geddon through as well. Down the hall, to Tione's horror, she saw Shani barely limping towards her, with the dragon right behind him and approaching fast.

“Shani!” Tione ran back towards the dragon, unsure of what she could do. She ran past Shani, her fists clenched. The dragon's gaping maw extended toward her. At the last second, Tione kicked upwards, knocking the monster's jaws together with a crunch. The dragon hissed in pain, dripping blood from where teeth were knocked out by the blow. Tione raised a fist and slammed it down onto the dragon's snout, and cried out when its scales scraped her hand.

The dragon shook its head in anger, and as Tione turned her back to follow Shani out of the temple, she could feel hot, humid air hit her back. She increased her pace closer to the door, where Aleric was waiting just outside, holding his hands just inside the doors.

“Tione, here!”

Tione leapt forward, grabbing Aleric's arms. She could feel the rough stone scraping her arms and bare legs as she was hoisted up to the opening. She winced as she felt something drip down her leg. She knew it was blood. The heat of the dragon's breath blew up her skirt, penetrated her thin clothing easily and formed tiny droplets of moisture on her skin. With a final painful tug, Tione felt herself pass through the hole blasted in the doorway.

Suddenly, she wouldn't move any further. Her skirt was caught on something. A stone, or could it be that the dragon had grabbed hold of her?

“Oh, shit!” Aleric screamed.

“Pull harder!” Geddon yelled.

Tione felt Aleric pull harder on her aching arms. When she felt something tug back and shake agitatedly, she knew the dragon had her by the dress. Besides that, she felt something scalding hot drip onto her upper leg. “Ick!” Tione screamed. “Aleric, help me, damn it!”

Aleric grunted as he tugged harder and took one hand off her. “Sorry about this, Tione!” Aleric reached around and with a ripping sound, Tione was free of the dragon's jaws, and she and Aleric flew back onto the slick stone floor outside the temple. Behind them, the dragon roared and scratched at the doors, which still failed to open.

“Ugh…” Aleric groaned, sitting up slowly. “Let's get out of here… right now.”

Geddon looked over Tione's wounds. “Everyone but Aleric is hurt pretty badly… perhaps we should get away from this place and heal.” He smiled sweetly through the pain of his own wounds.

It took some time for everyone to limp around the corner of the temple where they no longer had to deal with the presence of the dragon. Aleric supported Tione on his shoulder. Why did she have to keep sacrificing her dignity like this? The dragon glared with a single green eye through the opening its prey had escaped through. As they limped out of sight, it bellowed in rage.

Safely away from the temple, Tione slowly raised her head and looked around. The forest around them had calmed now to give way to a calm, cool summer night. All that remained was the smell of wet leaves and soil left behind by the rain and an occasional raindrop that dripped down from the treetops onto her head. She breathed a sigh of relief.

“Hey. I did it again,” Aleric said. When Tione looked up at him, he winked. “You owe me double now.” Aleric gently leaned Tione against the wall of the temple. Geddon and Shani lowered themselves onto the damp stone floor, obviously in pain.

Tione looked down in disbelief. “My skirt! You… you destroyed it!” It had formerly reached almost to her ankles. Now it didn't even fall past her knees. It had been torn off just short of the pocket.

“Forget about the tear… I doubt that's dragon blood all over it and you,” Shani pointed out.

Tione looked down again at herself. There were broad abrasions on her legs and arms. Tiny pebbles from the rock wall had managed to embed themselves in parts of wounds and where skin had been scraped away, blood was quickly welling up and soaking into the skirt and sleeves of her dress. She also noticed a spot of blood on the pocket. Idly ignoring her stinging wounds, she reached into the pocket and felt something sharp. Pulling out, she noticed it was one of the bloody teeth that had been knocked out of the dragon's mouth.

“Hey, that's quite a keepsake,” Aleric said. “You should string it on a necklace so people will know just how scary you are--”

Tione hit Aleric over the head. “Jerk.”

“I'll cast those healing spells now…” Geddon said. “I'm afraid most of our wounds won't heal entirely—I haven't learned strong enough magic yet. However, this should get us to where we have to go.”

Geddon held his hands over Tione's body. “Sukri Sethu Shafna.”

Tione winced as her wounds began to glow. The effects of the magic made them sting and tingle, like waking up a limb that had fallen asleep. Still, she brought herself to watch. The torn skin pulled itself shut slowly, and the tiny bits of stone that had managed to lodge themselves in her flesh were pushed out and rolled off her legs to fall onto the ground. Before a minute had passed, the wounds had almost completely closed. The debilitating stinging sensation ended.

“That's as far as this spell can go,” Geddon told her. “I trust you feel better?”

Tione nodded. “Um… yeah, thanks.”

Geddon nodded once. “Good. I'll tend to Shani and myself now.” He turned to Shani.

Meanwhile, Tione ran a hand over her healed skin. Only a mild ache and vague remnants of the wounds remained. As she touched the skin, she realized how much she'd gone through in the passage of only a couple of days. She leaned against the cool stone, closing her eyes and finally paying attention to the crickets chirping and the leaves rustling. It was still a long way to Sela. Where would they go to now?

“Aleric,” Tione said, getting out her book and opening it to the place she had marked with her map. “Is there a town relatively close to this place?”

“Check the map, Silly. I think Cognito is pretty close,” Aleric answered.

Scowling, Tione opened the map. It took her a while to locate where they were, especially in the moonlight sparsely filtered through the trees, but she finally managed to locate Temple Oh on the map. Aleric was right; there was indeed apparently a town named Cognito nearby just on the edge of the forest.

Geddon turned. “We're finished here!” He and Shani, as if one being, rose to their feet. The two of them were so alike. It was no wonder; Shani had spent his entire life with Geddon. Even though their attitudes differed, they were almost like twin brothers who knew what the other had in mind.

Tione stood up, feeling a little dizzy. “There's a town about half a day's travel from here.” She held up the map. “We should go there. I haven't been to a city since I left Sheste… if that even counts.”

Aleric crossed his arms and eyed Tione smugly. “You'll have to learn to go longer than a couple days without seeing any sign of civilization at all, Tione. When I was seventeen, I traveled for weeks, only finding a unicorn chained in a meadow. It said it was a `virgin trap,' whatever that meant, and…”

“All right, enough,” Tione interrupted. “Let's go to Cognito.”

Locating the direction of travel was simple enough, and soon they were on their way, pushing their way through the underbrush in the dark. Before long, Tione had grown quite tired of tripping over roots, slipping into sinkholes and being struck in the face by stray branches. The forest was full of life even at night. She was positive she saw a small, furry animal with large black eyes pick a bug off a branch and toast it with fiery breath.

“We're going to have to do this for half a day?” Tione muttered, picking a twig out of her hair, which had become disheveled from the past day's misadventures.

“I'm afraid so,” Geddon said from the front of the party. “But at least it will be getting light soon.” He had tucked his white cape into his tunic to keep it from getting caught. Still, it was already looking a little ragged.

Tione looked at herself and at everyone else and realized that no one's clothes were in the condition they were in the day before. “Can we get some fresh clothes once we get to Cognito?”

“No need!” Shani said, looking back at Tione. “Magic can clean and repair damaged clothing! You've got two magicians on your side; might as well take advantage while it's free,” he said.

For most of her life, magic had been almost completely foreign to her. Suddenly In the course of a day she'd seen magic do everything from provide warmth to demolish a temple. She pushed a branch out of her way. “What's the Magic Academy like?”

Geddon paused, stepped over a particularly large root, and said, “It's funny you asked… when I heard your name, I thought of the founder of Sela and its school of magic, Tione the Tumultuous. But she couldn't be you; she, of course, was born five hundred and ninety-six years ago, and while she was an elf, could never be alive today… she founded the city of Sela and became its first ruler. I am her direct descendant.”

“Shit!” Aleric suddenly cursed. He opened up his satchel as he walked. “Oh. Oh, damn…”

“What? What's wrong?” Tione asked, looking over.

“The puppy's fallen apart. Must be a puzzle dog. Ha! No wonder it wasn't moving.”

“It's WHAT?!” Tione asked, stepping over to the other side of Aleric and peering into the bag. She expected to see a mangled, broken pile of fur.

“Hold on, it's not a big deal. Puzzle dogs fall apart easily. You just have to put the pieces back together.” He stopped walking and knelt down on the wet ground. “Hold up, everyone.”

He dumped the pieces of the little dog out of the bag. Tione almost couldn't look. They were just lumps of fur. “He's not hurt?”

“No,” Aleric said, picking up a couple of pieces and sticking them together.

“Hold on! You're going to get his head backwards or something! Let me do it!”

“Keep your skirt on—what's left of it, anyway,” Aleric muttered, sticking a couple more pieces onto what he had already assembled. In a couple minutes, he had put the puppy back together, whereupon it seemed to come back to life, acting a little disoriented. Aleric picked it up. “Sorry about that, pal,” he said to it, standing up again. "That was a bit rough, huh?"

As Tione watched it lick Aleric's face, it suddenly seemed to notice her watching it, slowly turning its vacant gaze to her. Tione looked away and shuddered. What a creepy animal.

"Hey. Stupid. Cut it out." In reply, the puppy merely yapped once.

As if sensing her feelings, Shani said, “Don't worry about it. Wouldn't you like to be able to lose an arm and be able to attach it again without having to worry about bleeding to death or whether you'll be able to use it again?”

Tione ignored Shani's comment, not wishing to think about it. “But with that… lady in charge now, the Academy's changed, right?”

Geddon nodded. “Significantly. I can scarcely believe how many time-honored traditions and laws that have been in place since Sela was founded have been done away with, and how many horrible new laws have replaced them.”

“So she's changing a few things. Change can be a good thing, Geddon.” Aleric said, patting his companion on the back so hard that Geddon almost fell forward.

Tione wondered if she smacked Aleric every time he said something stupid, it would teach him not to say such brainless things. She rolled her eyes. “Shut up, Aleric. Geddon, what sort of things is she changing, exactly?”

“Well, for one thing, she erected several new rules about the conduct of the casting magic. For example, you can only turn small mammals into precious metals under the light of a full moon at midnight while wearing a pumpkin over your head. This may seem to be of little consequence, but people under restrictions like that get irritated quite quickly. Mainly because people aren't willing to stay up until midnight just to turn a beaver into bronze. Nobody's really ecstatic about the concept of wearing a pumpkin over their head, either.”

“You should have seen how the squirrels reacted,” Shani added, wanting to get in on the conversation.

Tione had no comment to make, but instead looked at Geddon as if he had just told her that her hair was about to devour her face.

“You heard about the banning of Shani's uncle's book… but her ban on apple fritters is one of the stranger things she's done,” Geddon said, scratching one of his long ears.

“Apple… fritters?” Aleric asked.

“I'm unsure why, but anyone possessing apple fritters or apple fritter-related paraphernalia now runs the risk of being apprehended.” Geddon shrugged. “She's very strict about it, and the One Hundred Twenty-Fifth Annual Magic Festival is approaching.”

“And what's a magic festival without apple fritters?” Shani said.

“Magic Festival?” Tione asked, intrigued, ignoring the apple fritters. She lost her concentration on where she was going and was promptly scolded with a branch whipping across her face. “Ouch!”

“Yes,” Geddon said. Tione couldn't see his face, but by the slight change in his gait, she could tell that he was proud of his place of birth and the festival. “Annually, Sela holds a festival where magicians from all over Jigsaw can come to showcase their work and celebrate Sela's heritage. It's also a good place to purchase enchanted items or magical services. Some of the greatest mages in the land come to give demonstrations there.”

A real magic festival. Somehow the idea of so many magicians in one place sounded intimidating, but exotic and exciting compared to what she was used to in Sheste. The whole of Jigsaw spreading out before her so quickly was a bit overwhelming, even for her, though she'd never admit it. Looking for somewhere to transfer her thoughts to, Tione pointed through the treetops to the sky, which the dark gray clouds had completely disappeared from. A minute few points of light were visible through the thinning treetops. Being faced with so many thoughts and possibilities had passed the time quite well, and they were now almost out of the forest, and they could see rolling hills laid out invitingly. Past the plains, distant forests and mountains were on the horizon.

The prince stifled a yawn and opened his pack where Daisy was huddled. The dragon had been curled up into a protective ball and now looked excited to be paid attention to. “Shani, perhaps this would be an appropriate time to place our `messenger dragon' idea into effect.”

Shani nodded. “Enoana should know about all of this. Can Daisy make it?”

“At any rate, she'll make it before we do; there is much for us to accomplish before we return to Sela.” Daisy perched on the elf's forearm, its tiny white tail whipping eagerly. Geddon's eyes met the dragon's, and he simply murmured, “Enoana,” causing the little white reptile to flap its few wings a few times, launching into the sky and flying away.

Aleric and Tione watched the dragon retreat in the direction of the rising sun. “What's that about?”

“Enoana,” Geddon answered, “is, I suppose what one would call an `insider' on the investigation into Tixe's true intentions. She's… er… passionate about any task that falls into her hands.” He followed up this final remark with a small frown that searched for tactfulness.

The sun was just poking its glowing head over the horizon, looking eager to light up the land of Jigsaw again. A haze of vivid pink, purple and orange surrounded the rising sun, looking very supportive of the sun's ambitions. To the east, the blue sky was still deep purple, indifferent to the struggle the sun was currently locked in with the dark.

As sunlight flooded her eyes, Tione yawned, realizing how tired she was. It had been a while since she had slept. Hopefully she'd have the chance that night. She rubbed her eyes, felt the familiar tingling in the back of her head, and felt a little better. Feeling her eyelids getting droopy, she tugged at them until they perked up again.

“Ugh! Don't do that,” Aleric said from beside her.

“What? This?” Tione grabbed her eyelids between her thumbs and forefingers and turned them inside out.

Aleric shuddered. “Gods! What's wrong with you?”

A sudden voice woke her up more than either of her previous methods. “Better look out behind you,” it told them.

Not bothering to locate the voice, everyone whirled around to see what the voice was referring to and were met with the sight of a terrible creature on the hill before them. Its appearance was appalling, with teeth sticking out every which way from its jaws like knives and its long fur that looked like it had been trimmed with a jagged piece of glass was gnarled and tangled—far too stiff to wave in the morning breeze. Eyes that glowed like the moon glowered down at them. About the size of a large dog, the monster stood awkwardly on stout, muscular inward-facing legs. With an unearthly growl, it waved its long tail. In reply the puppy in Aleric's arms snarled.

“What the hell's that?” Tione asked anyone who might have an answer.

“Oh, good Sofia… it's a Madas Beast…” Aleric said. “No choice but to fight it here, or it'll chase us until we can't run anymore.” He drew his sword.

The animal snarled and charged forward.

“Geddon, cast a spell!” Tione yelled.

“I'm afraid I can't,” he replied. “I can't do any more magic until I rest!”

“Great,” Tione mumbled and pulled out her spoon, tossing it to Shani. “You can use this better than I can.”

Setting the dog out of harm's way, Aleric poised himself to fight, his sword steadied in front of him. “No. No no. Shani… you stay back. If it looks like I'm going to lose,” he said, charging to meet the monster, “get in here and save my ass!”

“Forget it,” Tione muttered. How could Aleric possibly take on something of that size by himself?

The two combatants met about halfway up the hill. The Madas Beast leapt up onto its hind legs, while, with an intimidating yell, Aleric dove to the ground and slashed at the creature's belly, only to get kicked by its hind legs.

Sitting up and wiping blood from the scratch marks on his face, he rose to his knees and lunged at the monster just as it turned around and oriented itself in a pouncing position. It dove fearlessly at Aleric, teeth glinting in the dim sunlight. There was no time to anticipate its attack or even for Aleric to ready his sword. Screaming, Aleric covered his face with his arms. This was unnecessary because the part that the Madas Beast sank its knife-like teeth into was his right calf. Gaping with pain, he shook his leg wildly, stabbing wildly with the sword, but the beast continued to hold on.

The Madas Beast, parts of its tangled fur now dripping blood, dug its teeth in deeper. Tione gasped and averted her eyes as she heard the crack of bone splintering. Aleric did not scream. Instead, he whimpered and went limp in his opponent's grip.

“Aleric…” He'd be killed, the way things were going. But there wasn't anything Tione could do.

The Madas Beast stood over Aleric, a massive paw brandishing monstrous claws pressed against his heaving chest. Tione turned away again as she watched it open its mouth to bite into Aleric again. In a moment of inspiring boldness the puppy jumped out into the fray but was knocked to pieces again by a single swipe of the monster's claw. If Tione hadn't seen it before she probably would have screamed.

She looked to Geddon and Shani, but they looked just as helpless as she did. Geddon was out of magic, and no one was about to ask Shani to take the thing on with his spoon when Aleric, an experienced fighter had failed so quickly. Feeling horrible, she prepared herself to run. No; Aleric had said there was no way to run from it. Well, if she were to get killed, she may as well face death head on with someone she kind of regarded as a friend.

Just as Tione prepared to dive hopelessly into the fray, something distracted the monster. A rustle came from a stand of trees nearby, followed by an annoyed voice that muttered, “I don't believe this…” Looking behind it to the source of the sound, the monster bared its teeth and permitted a growl to escape from the pit of its belly.

That was when Tione heard the voice that had warned them earlier, a voice that sounded familiar. “Guess I'm a little late,” the voice hissed and gave a strange and chilling laugh, sudden and loud like the sound of a shelf stacked with pots and pans falling to the floor. “It's your own fault; you people have the worst timing.”

The figure that emerged, panting from the trees was holding his shirt and cape under his arm. Regaining his composure with a deep breath, he swept a hand through long, disheveled black hair. The young man, who looked to be a little over twenty, had a complexion of dark bronze, framed around his cheeks by long black hair that fell on either side of his face in front of long, pointed ears. His fanged mouth curved into a ruthless grin, he simply murmured, "Hi."

Sweeping his long black hair over his shoulder and allowing it to flow through the air, he wrapped a slender hand over the monster's face. Black mist burst from the ground as if it suddenly possessed pores, and swirled around him. The Madas Beast pulled backward, stepping away from Aleric, but could not break free of the grip on its head.

“Ventatra Sentrakri…” he murmured. “Lekka.” He released his hold.

Almost immediately, the monster's eyes and mouth gaped in pain. Blood trickled out of every orifice as its skin began to bubble, forming huge boils under its bloodied fur. Convulsing in pain, it collapsed to the ground as the boils burst in tiny explosions, discharging their contents and leaving the Madas Beast bloody, limp and void of life.

Feeling sick, Tione stared, unable to take her eyes off the monster's corpse or rid her memory of the sight of its death. Aleric, who had witnessed the spectacle up close, gaped in horror.

Geddon and Shani gasped. “That's a demon!” Shani hissed.

“It is?” Tione had never seen one so close before.

Shani gestured to the carnage at the newcomer's feet. “What would you call it?”

“Perhaps,” Geddon murmured, “We should rescue Aleric and leave it alone. Perhaps it has no business with us.”

Tione nodded, already making a broad circle around to Aleric as the demon examined its victim. “I think that's a good idea.”

The demon whirled to face them, and Tione was hit by the gaze of his feline gold eyes. “Hey! HEY! Where are you going?” he demanded, grabbing his cape when it blew a little too dramatically and flipped over his face.

Aleric grunted in pain as Tione struggled to help him up. “To the nearest demon-free location,” she replied.

The demon stepped forward, his black leather boots flattening the grass. “Not without me, you're not! - wait…”

“Oh, you've got to be kidding me!” a voice suddenly whined.

“What is it—oh, you've got to be kidding me!” a second moaned.

Two figures ran up the hill behind them, panting. The woman wore a skintight pink bustier, dark purple boots, leather gloves and cape. The man wore a purple tunic with pink boots and gloves. Both of them wore what appeared to be slick steel armor that completely followed the contours of their bodies—the woman, across her chest and shoulders, over her left forearm and right calf, and the man over his torso, right forearm and left leg.

The man blinked his good eye—the other was covered by a plate of metal with a red glow where it should have been. “It's dead?”

The woman looked disdainfully at the slain Madas beast as if it still had the ability to see her scorn. Her right eye, instead of her left was similarly covered. “So much for that, I guess.” With a shrug, she put her hands forward, and Tione saw that her hands were encased in tight-fitting metal gloves equipped with claws.

She sighed. “Wait, wait… who are you?”

The man stepped forward. “I am Luca, and this is Ruca. And, with our monster having failed to dispose of you, it appears the task has fallen into our hands.” He drew from a sheath on his belt something Tione couldn't begin to identify, other than that it was made of metal and he was brandishing it like a weapon.

“Well!” Tione replied. “In the space of a day, I've become important enough to need to be disposed of! We must be doing better than I thought we were.”

Aleric scowled at Ruca and Luca, who looked ready to attack at a moment's notice. “Damn! If only I had that talking warclub…”

“You had a talking warclub?” Shani asked. “What happened to it?”

Aleric winced as Tione shifted her grip on him. “Lost it.”

Next to them, the demon raised a dark eyebrow. “How do you lose a talking warclub?”

“Deliberately.”

Luca pointed his weapon at the group. “Enough talk of verbally-gifted weapons!” The object he was armed with seemed to have a small hole at the end that was pointed at them. “You won't even live long enough to see the glory of Silver City!”

Silver City? Did that have anything to do with the Silver Ruins and the Silver Tribe? Tione's annoyance at not knowing what was going on was beginning to override her desire to protect her life.

The demon sauntered over to the pair. “You sure? Your superiors don't seem too serious, sending second-rate lackeys after us.” He sure seemed eager to include himself in the group.

Luca looked injured and lowered his strange weapon. “Lackeys?” he spat distastefully. “What put that delusion into your head?”

Shani shrugged nonchalantly from the back. “Only that you practically have `comic relief' tagged onto your faces. In storybooks you're the kind of characters who show up every few chapters with progressively stronger monster to keep the reader from getting too bored, then disappear when the truly scary foe shows up!”

Ruca scowled and reached out to rake her steel claws against the demon. “This isn't a storybook, boy!”

He caught Ruca's arm in mid-swing with a grim smile. “You wouldn't want to do that. Now, you two probably don't have enough information to keep around, so I see nothing wrong with just doing whatever I want with you.”

As a lascivious grin spread over the demon's face, those of Ruca and Luca turned down to apprehensive frowns in a way that Tione imagined the demon found most satisfying.

Luca sighed tensely, seeming to wish to let out his fear along with his breath. "Very well..." he stammered. "On occasion, one must admit defeat upon finding themselves unprepared for the circumstances at hand. We will retreat."

The demon looked back at the bewildered four heroes. Tione didn't possess nor wish to possess knowledge of what he intended to do, should there not be others present whom he may have wished to make a positive first impression with.

The demon scowled, then shrugged dismissively with a sigh. “Right, right. But next time I see you…”

Chest puffed out like a congested dragon, Luca huffed dramatically, “Next time will be different!” Ruca, regarding the victors as one might a bit of mold on a piece of cheese, took her companion by the arm and began leading him away.

“Um… yeah!” Aleric retorted from in Tione's arms. “Get out! Or you'll find yourselves on the receiving end of more of the same! OUCH!”

Tione hung her head. “Dammit, Aleric, if you weren't bleeding already…”

The five of them watched Luca and Ruca retreat over the hills, muttering about unfair odds.

The demon turned around with a whirl of his cape. “Well…” he began.

“That was Forbidden magic that you used earlier,” Geddon interrupted timidly. “Who are you?”

“Sorry if you found it unpleasant. The spell, I mean. But I've waited far too long to introduce myself, and I've been so damn bored.” He bowed deferentially, allowing his long hair to cascade over his shoulders. “I'm Kao-xe'kale Jallen. Call me Kao if you want.”