Page 11 of Buzz Kill (Smoke & Mirrors Tavern #7)

Chapter eleven

ALWIN

I withdrew my sword from the demon and he tumbled back into the water. I intended to jump in after Declan, but a firm hand held me back. Rith pointed to the still bleeding wound on my leg. Perhaps a reminder of what the blood would attract in the water, or a warning that I wasn’t at my strongest. Either way, I couldn’t waste a healing charm on myself now. Declan surely needed more healing than my charms could handle, I would need them all if there was any chance to save him.

We were too close to the edge of the cliff and he’d surely gone over the fall within seconds. It might be wiser to search the river at the bottom for him. Rith’s face was grim, but he pulled me to the edge of the cliff to see the bottom of the river where the demons that fled earlier were already fishing their man out of the water.

Further downstream, three more demons pulled a pale body onto the bank and looked down at him curiously. Because the body they pulled from the water wasn’t the same one they’d seen me protecting. My house crest still glinted in the fading light around his neck, but the glamour was gone. His lips nearly blue, his skin too pale, too still. Declan’s body was human again.

My bow was already in my hand, but my aim was anything but steady. It couldn’t be helped, my whole body was shaking with exhaustion and blood loss… and something else that hadn’t hit me until I saw Declan in their grip. The first arrow hit a demon, but it wasn’t the one I’d been aiming for. I hadn’t missed an unmoving target like that since I was a child.

My shot alerted the demons to my presence and a few hurled their swords in our direction. My arrows bounced off of their armor and stuck in their thick skin, causing little damage. Normally, aiming for softer eyes or throats was no problem, but my hands refused to stop shaking. I’d fought far tougher battles than this one, but never had I reacted this way.

My body and mind would not steady. I was filled with turmoil and the longer it raged on, the worse my aim became. Shot after shot rained down and the demons were still able to collect the bodies and escape.

With no other choice, I turned away from the cliff and ran back into the trees. The drop at the cliff was too steep, but those were the demons that had fled earlier, which meant there was another way down. Rith shouted something and tugged at me to follow him. He led me through the trees for a while until we came to what passed as a small village.

At one end of the main dirt path was a large, impressive building and scattered throughout the rest of the clearing were small shacks and tents made of animal hides. Some merchant stalls lined the path, and while most of the demons scurrying around were some kind of beastfolk with fox ears and tails, the larger demons we’d fought could be seen tromping around the town with their weapons on display. The guard, perhaps, or their oppressors. Their lives weren’t my concern.

“Where is Declan?” I asked Rith.

The little demon had found us a back way in that bypassed the guards, telling me this wasn’t his first visit to this village. We might not speak the same language, but he knew Declan’s name and he pointed to the building that towered over the rest of the village. I’d assumed as much, but Rith’s answer confirmed it and I braced myself for another fight.

I didn’t make it two steps before Rith tugged me back and shook his head. He led the way to a back path and an old smaller building just outside the main building’s gates and went inside without hesitation. I ducked through the low doorway behind him as he called out a question, and an older, raspy voice immediately answered in surprise.

The little demon led me to a kitchen where one of the beastfolk was cooking over a huge stove. This demon was larger than the others we’d seen scurrying about and whether from age, or species, his ears and tail were gray. This man was closer to a wolf or a coyote than his fox-like kin.

The demon chattered with Rith, his concern obvious. His eyes landed on me as I stepped into the room and widened. For some reason, he seemed shocked that Rith had brought me with him and he asked a question with something close to wonder in his voice.

Rith shook his head and answered the demon’s question, replacing his surprise with confusion. The longer Rith spoke, the grimmer the wolf’s face grew. He didn’t seem to want to agree to what Rith was asking, but in the end he sighed and led us to another storage room.

Rith took my hand and pulled me inside and the demon left us alone as Rith rifled through the shelves. Finally he pulled down two bundles of fabric and handed one over. He tapped the charm on my chest and then gestured to himself, patting his own head. At first I thought he wanted me to glamour him as well, but then he set his bundle aside and took the one he’d handed me, holding it up to show me this was a shirt and apron sized for a child barely bigger than he was. He stuffed the clothing back into my hands and replaced his own shirt, donning the servant’s clothing he’d set aside. When he was done, he stared at me expectantly.

The sense of urgency inside me hadn’t settled since I’d seen that blade run through Declan’s chest and taking the time to alter my glamour wasn’t something I wanted to do. I wanted to barge into that mansion and kill everything that stood in my way. But while I had the will, I had no other advantage on my side.

This was enemy turf, I was significantly wounded, outnumbered, and unfamiliar with the security. Rith seemed to think this was our best way in and while my composure was a fragile thing at the moment, held in place only by the determination to keep moving forward until I had Declan back in my possession, every second wasted being cautious was driving me closer to a point I’d never experienced before.

The image of Declan’s pale lifeless body kept flashing through my mind. I knew what it meant that he’d lost his glamour. If the spell had nothing to draw from, it meant it was too late. He was practically human. Too fragile. Too mortal. For the first time I cursed his decision to refuse his birthright. Had he just accepted his fate and bound a demon to his life, he would still be alive.

That Declan and I would likely never have crossed paths. He wouldn’t be the same person, and I wouldn’t have known what it was like to have this uncontrollable feeling raging inside of me. Would it have been better that way? A bitter sound spilled from my lips, something close to a scoff. Since when did I entertain ideas as useless as what-ifs? Since when did the loss of a comrade send me reeling? It wasn’t like I’d never lost anyone in all my years. I’d watched my own mentors and students fall before me in battle and kept fighting. I did what needed to be done without fail. So why was I falling to pieces over this one sorcerer?

A pat to my arm pulled my focus back to Rith who was now watching me with pity. He tapped the charm around my neck again and made a smaller gesture with his hands. His meaning was obvious and I gave in, removing the charm to make the adjustments. The weave was far from perfect, but for once, I didn’t care. It was crude and rough, and would never hold up to inspection by fae-kind, but these creatures were not of my world and it only needed to be passable at a glance.

I replaced the glamour, shrinking my form and folding away my sword and bow the same way my human glamour did. Rith gave a nod and handed over the clothing, which I threw on over my own clothes. The wound on my leg still bled, but it was hidden by the long apron.

The little demon grabbed my arm and hauled me out of the room to stand before the wolf-man. The demon’s thick eyebrows rose at the sight of my much smaller form, but he nodded and gestured to a set of trays on the counter. Rith handed me a tray and took the other before leading me out a door into a dining area filled with the same kind of demons we’d fought on the cliff.

We didn’t stop in the dining room, I followed him through another door to a stone pathway that led down a flight of stairs. The tunnel beyond headed in the direction of the larger building and we eventually headed back up another flight of stairs and into a second dining area with more demons. Despite the fact that we didn’t look like the beast-folk outside these walls, no one questioned the two young demons in their midst.

Rith dropped his tray off at one of the tables and I did the same, following as he rushed off through another door. The room beyond was a place for refilling the guards’ drinks and washing dishes, and there was another young demon that looked a lot like Rith rushing around with a tray full of cups. He didn’t even look up as he pushed through the door we’d just come through.

Rith made a face, but said nothing as he led me out of the guard’s dining areas and into the servant tunnels within the building. Eventually, we came out to the side of a grand hall. Compared to the village outside, this building was fit for royalty and the demon sitting on the throne was one I’d never seen before. His skin was a deep gray, and long white hair fell around his shoulders while hard red eyes stared at the ground before him where two of his soldier demons kneeled with their heads bowed.

Declan’s bruised and bloody body was laid out on the ground between the two demons. It had been nearly twenty minutes since they’d pulled him from the river. Even if Elliot had been here, it was too late to save him.

The demon on the throne listened to the kneeling demons before asking a question. Whatever answer they gave made him angry and his magic lashed out, wrapping around one of the guards and killing him in an instant. The soldier’s body twitched like it had been electrocuted before falling still next to Declan. The remaining demon trembled as he reluctantly answered another question and the king shouted his response. The demon bowed and scurried off to heed his lord’s command.

Once he was alone, the red-eyed demon stood from his throne and descended the stairs of his platform to get a closer look at Declan. He hadn’t made it to the last step when a wet cough burst from Declan’s throat. He rolled to his side with a pained groan, choking up water and blood as the glamour flickered to life again.

My heartbeat thundered in my ears and Rith gasped next to me. What just happened shouldn’t have been possible. There was no magic that truly revived the dead. There were rumors of lost knowledge, but no one had heard of such a thing in centuries. The most anyone had accomplished was reviving empty shells — nothing more than puppets. Could Declan be tied to a demon after all?

The sorcerer swore as soon as he could breathe again. He was clearly still injured and gingerly pressed a hand to his chest. Bruises and cuts from where his body had been battered by the rocks in the river still marred his darker, glamoured skin. He was in bad shape, but he was alive.

The royal demon had frozen when Declan revived, but now he eyed the sorcerer with unveiled desire. He’d just watched the magic user come back from the dead and it was clear he desired the key to this kind of spell. Barely alive, and he was already in danger again.

Rith’s hand tightened on my arm before I could stand and I glanced at him with growing impatience. The demon pointed at me and gestured toward the main entrance where the guards surely stood, then gestured at himself and pointed at Declan. His plan was simple and clear, I was to cause a distraction to pull the king away and Rith would retrieve Declan. It wasn’t a good plan, but it might give Declan and Rith the best chance at escape.

Since the goal was distraction, I released my glamour and followed the servant tunnel around the grand hall to where it let out near the entrance. Sword in hand, I came up behind the guards at the entrance and felled two of them before the others even noticed my presence. Their shouts were surely loud enough to attract the king, but I drew them into the entrance of the mansion to ensure their cries echoed through the halls.

The shaking that plagued me earlier had subsided and my movements were sure. While my injury still slowed me down, I’d watched these demons kill Declan and the unsated anger that had been eating away at me since I saw that sword through his chest needed a target. Never did I fight so emotionally, but those feelings I’d always considered a weakness were now fueling this fight.

Finally the demon king appeared in the mansion’s entrance watching his guards fall one by one. He shouted at his men and raised his hand to cast his magic. Knowing what was coming, I shoved one of his men in the path of the spell and he died screaming in agony. The other guards shuffled back, afraid of meeting the same fate. The demon king snarled and tried again, and this time I swung my sword. Elven weapons were enhanced with magic and could defend against most spells. I had no way to be sure it would hold up against demon magic, but my sword had been forged by a master weaver, if anything could defend against such an attack, it was this weapon.

The spell hit my blade with a clang and while the magic didn’t break, it was deflected. Another demon screamed in agony as the spell enveloped him, but the demon lord and his guards froze in shock. It became clear no one had ever challenged this demon and won. He’d grown accustomed to his unrivaled power. And that would prove to be his greatest weakness.

I stepped forward, swinging my sword and driving him back with every attack. That deadly spell was his only move and he tried it again and again, only to be thwarted by my sword. Finally, the demon king turned and rushed back into the grand hall. I followed, but my sure steps faltered when I found Declan and Rith hadn’t yet escaped.

The young demon scurried away when he caught sight of the demon king, but Declan was in no shape to run off. Was that why Rith hadn’t been able to get him out? Could Declan not even stand?

The demon king went straight for Declan and lifted him by an arm before attempting to escape. My sword was at his throat before he made it two steps.

The demon paused and hissed a threat through his teeth as I tugged Declan to my side and backed out of reach. The sorcerer winced at the movement, but something in my chest loosened the moment he was in my arms. That moment of relief didn’t last. With Declan leaning on me for support, my movements and ability to deflect his spells were hindered and the demon recognized this immediately.

A spell formed in each of his hands and he took a threatening step forward as I backed up, preparing to defend. Clocking our retreat, a sadistic smile curved the demon king’s lips and the magic in his hands grew brighter, bigger, stronger. He planned to make an example out of us for daring to challenge his authority. Declan found the strength to pull us back a few extra steps and the demon king launched both spells. It seemed he was giving up on his prize and intended to kill us both. I raised my sword to deflect the spell aimed at Declan, but the ground beneath the demon king shimmered faintly before both spells rebounded and slammed into him.

Demons from all over the house came running as the demon king’s screams filled the hall. The power of the two spells he’d thrown were far beyond the ones he’d used earlier and when the currents finally died out, his body dropped to the ground nearly unrecognizable.

The guards moved forward, seeming unsure whether to attack, and I raised my sword, ready to fight our way out. Rith reappeared suddenly and his shout stopped the others in their tracks. He announced something to the others and then turned and grabbed my arm, leading me back away from the main entrance. He pulled us up onto the platform and pushed me onto the throne before dropping Declan into my lap.

Declan reached for Rith, but the demon shuffled back a step, giving a nearly imperceptible shake of his head before kneeling. He bowed his head and said something loudly, clearly meant for the other demons in the room. There was only a brief pause before all of the servant demons dropped to their knees. After a moment of hesitation, the guards also kneeled.

“What the fuck is happening?” Declan asked weakly.

“It appears we’re in charge of this village now.”

Kill the king and his kingdom is yours. It wasn’t so different from how things worked in my world. The thing was, I wasn’t the one who killed the demon. It was why Rith hadn’t gotten Declan out. He’d been too busy setting that trap spell.

“Shouldn’t Rith be the one up here?” Declan asked, clearing thinking along the same lines.

I looked down at the little demon, but it was hard to be angry with him for setting us up. He’d seen an opportunity and he’d taken it. The guards had seen me deflect their king’s magic earlier, so it was too easy for them to believe I’d been the one to take him down.

“If we hadn’t been here and Rith had taken out the king on his own, the guards would have been the next strongest demons and they would have taken over. They wouldn’t answer to a child servant and he knew it. Killing the one controlling the guards would only have made things worse for the servants and the villagers.”

Three of the guard demons approached and spoke. Their tone had changed entirely now that we sat on the throne, but I didn’t care what they had to say. I raised my sword and pointed it at the demon who spoke.

“Leave!” I demanded.

The demon wasn’t familiar with the word, but Rith easily recognized it and he gave a nod before turning to the guards. He spoke commandingly, his tone vaguely threatening as he relayed and likely embellished the simple order.

The guards grew nervous as he spoke and made a hasty escape by the time he’d finished. He watched the guards run off with satisfaction, but I was already moving on and I pulled a healing charm from my pouch and looped it over Declan’s head. He grabbed my arm before I could activate it.

“I’m fine, use it to heal your leg.”

My shoulders tensed at his lie. “You are not fine. You were dead and even if you revived, you are far from fine!”

Declan huffed and waved me off. “I didn’t die, the sword missed all the vital spots. I’m sure it just looked that way because I passed out.”

“If you were unconscious the glamour would have held. You were dead for longer than it should have been possible to revive you from.”

Declan grimaced, but gave in with a sigh. “Technically, I was only dead for a moment.”

I activated the healing charm and then pulled out another for myself.

“What does that mean? I assumed you were tied to a demon, but then you should have healed while your demon took the damage. And even being bound to a demon doesn’t allow you to come back after being dead after so long. Does your family have some spell that protects you from death? I wasn’t aware that magic like that existed.”

“I’m not tied to any demons, and there are no spells that can prevent death. If there was, everyone would be after it.”

“Explain,” I demanded.

“It’s just like I said, there are no spells that prevent death. I know because I searched for one for years. I went through every book in the Prescott library searching for something that would guarantee my family would never win. The spell on my hands served its purpose, but overall it was a laughable failure in defending against them. In all of history, every attempt to defy death has met with failure or some horrifying drawback, like vampirism.

“The only legend of immortality I ever found with any truth to it was from centuries ago about a man who’d been told by a seer that he had only six months to live. Upon hearing this news, he went out and lived his life like there were no consequences. He stole and cheated, drank himself into oblivion. He lured in women, used, and discarded them, and blew through his money because there was no future to save for. He made enemies everywhere he went, and why not? By the time any consequences caught up to him, he knew he would be dead.

“After four months he’d offended many people and plenty wanted his head, but by that point he’d grown so used to doing whatever he wanted, that he felt almost invincible. So when he encountered a beautiful young couple one day and became insanely jealous of the life he would never get to have, he gave it almost no thought before he killed the man and took his lovely wife for himself.

“The grieving woman begged him for mercy, demanding to know how he could kill so easily, why he felt no remorse or shame for the things he’d done. The man told her he had two months to live and could only focus on making the most of his time. There would be no day when he would look back and regret his actions, so why worry about what would never come to pass?

“As he slept that night, the widow snuck out and ventured into the forest to find the village witch she’d been warned about since she was a child. It took her all night, but eventually she found the old woman who lived in seclusion and she begged her to curse the man who’d stolen her life. She offered her own life up in exchange, and the witch accepted. The woman explained the story to the witch and she used her burning resentment to power a curse that would never let the man escape the consequences of his actions.

“Two months passed, but the man did not die. One by one, his enemies came for him, taking what they were owed. Over and over he was beaten, and robbed, and killed, but each time the curse refused to let him escape. He was revived to face the consequences of his actions again and again.”

“Your curse,” I realized.

“My body is frozen at the moment of death until the magic can repair the mortal wound. It doesn’t heal any other injuries, only keeps me from dying and how long it takes to wake up depends on the extent of that wound. You’d think I’d have taken the warning in the story for what it was, huh? But I was a stupid kid who thought I’d found a loophole. At the time it didn’t occur to me there are things far worse than death. A curse is always a curse.”

Declan was looking a little better by the time the healing was complete, but I didn’t get the chance to look him over before he was pulled from my lap and dragged away by Rith.