The Chronicles of Articia; Children of the Dead. K.D. Enos

Alec asked. "The last plague occurred when my father was a boy."

      Brendan raised his eyebrow at Alec's question. He had not expected that the young prince would be so interested or so insightful. Maybe he should suggest to the king that Alec attend more of these sessions. "You are right, Alec, it was recent. However, it is not a regular pattern, as your question suggests. The mages who study the stars discovered that we do not revolve around the star in a perfect circle. It has more of a shape like an egg from fowl. In addition, they believe this is true for the other worlds as well. The rift sometimes brings us to other worlds. One of these worlds is that of the destri."

      "We can still visit the destri world?" Dom questioned.

      "No, Dom, the destri have requested that we do not bring the darkness that afflicts us to their world," Brendan responded. "But they do occasionally move back and forth between the worlds. They somehow know when and where the rift will form and when it is close to their world. They do not share with us when it is going to happen. This is probably for the best since we would be tempted to visit. We are after all a very curious species."

      "Does the rift touch worlds other than the world of the destri and the world of the dwarves and elves?" Ava asked.

      "That is a great question, Ava, but unfortunately I cannot answer that. The rift does not always form in the same place. We have not been able to predict its pattern. Maybe after a thousand more years of study the answers will be found, but for now we try to estimate."

      "So when have they estimated the next alignment to occur? When will we have another plague?" Dominic asked with some concern.

      "They believe it will be sometime between now and ten summer seasons from now," Brendan replied.

      "That's kind of vague," Tristan stated.

      "Sorry, Prince, it is the best they can do with the information we have. The magical arts are not always precise." Brendan stood up and walked toward the door. "Well, our time is up for today. We can continue this subject area in a couple more turns of the sun." Brendan finished speaking and opened the door to the tower. "May a good day befall you all."

      The royal children, clearly disappointed that they did not learn more of their land's history, left Brendan's chamber for the end-of-day meal.

      Chapter 6

      The Harsh Price of Failure

      “They were better prepared than we thought they would be, Baron," the master-of-arms reported. "The girl had power we did not expect."

      "Enough," the baron responded. "I told you to take precautions when dealing with the royal whelps. Do you know what you have brought down on the barony?" As the baron finished his statement, he turned and looked wide-eyed as a demon grabbed his master-of-arms from behind and threw him out of the tower window. He could hear the soldier scream until he hit the ground in the courtyard.

      "My kind takes it personal when promises are not kept, Baron. You do not understand with what you dabble," the demon said as he grabbed the baron by the shirt and dragged him toward the window.

      "P-please, I am still committed to destroying the brood!" the baron screamed. The demon held the baron out the window over the courtyard. "You have already failed me, Baron. My kind does not give those who fail us second chances."

      "P-p-please, I will do whatever you ask of me!" The baron was in total panic now.

      "Anything Baron, what do you have that I could possibly need?" the demon responded.

      "Anything, Tell me. I will give you anything!" the baron yelled.

      The demon pulled the baron back into the room and looked the baron in the eyes. "Then I take your soul!" As he finished the statement, he reached into the baron's chest, pulled out his soul, and swallowed it whole.

      The baron turned a ghostly white as he started to understand what had just happened. He was not dead, but it was a fate worse than death. He could feel the torment of his soul in the demon and his spirit was broken. "What is your wish, Master?" the baron asked.

      "Now, Baron, let us discuss how we will eliminate our common threat to the darkness." The demon sat the baron down in a chair and started to pace the room.

      …

      "Master, while you were off to see the baron, a message from the citadel arrived from the dark sorcerers," the lesser demon reported.

      "What was this message, then?" his master inquired.

      "I would not presume to read a message that is directed to you, my Lord," the lesser demon said as he handed the scroll to his master and backed away. Before the lesser demon realized what was happening, the greater demon jumped across the room and struck the smaller demon so hard he flew into the wall.

      "Do you really believe that you can hide any deception from me? I can see your lies before they leave your maw." The lesser demon slowly rose to a crouch and scuttered to the other side of the room. "My apologies, Master. Of course, you know all. I only read the scroll to ensure that your time would not be wasted in its reading."

      The demon lord laughed as he opened the scroll. "Hmm, it seems that the dark master of the arts has an interesting idea. We may defeat the light yet. I will be leaving immediately for the citadel to converse with this dark practitioner."

      "Yes, my Lord," the lesser demon responded, a slight curve of a snarl forming on its face.