Page 13 of The Demon’s Delight (The Demon Princes #3)

Chapter 12

Hailon

W ith yet a third pair of socks, a mismatched set borrowed from the widow’s pile of mending, my boots were nearly a perfect fit. My feet were snug inside the leather as we made our way down the dirt road toward the Emankor Valley. I was grateful, because the blisters had burst, and I now had rudimentary bandages over the raw skin on both heels. At least I had the ointment.

Seir mumbled to himself, his thumbs laced through the straps of his pack, and his normally jovial expression pulled tight in concentration.

“We’ll find an inn soon, probably,” I assured him. “There may be towns not shown on that little map, besides. Honestly, I’m surprised that last one was, since it’s so small.”

He turned to me, tense expression melting into a smile. “Perhaps, yes. If not, maybe we’ll run along another way-house. There’s not much out here, and those are mainly intended for weary travelers with no other option in places such as these.”

I lovingly remembered of the little cabin we’d left behind. The soft mattress, hot water bath, and plentiful food. We were definitely not as badly off as we could be, but the comfort and luxury of that place would stay with me for a very long time.

“Are you familiar with all of Cyntere?” I asked. I thought I knew the answer, being that he’d found me so easily in Olinbourg and seemed to know where Ravenglen was in comparison.

“No, not all.” He kicked a stone with the toe of his boot. “I’ve visited some places, but my way of travel is not something that requires good directional ability.”

“I’m not sure I understand.”

He quirked his mouth to the side and glanced at the sky, as though searching for the words to formulate his response.

“You understand how portals work?”

“Yes. They’re like doorways to other places.”

“Exactly. And sifting? Or jumping?”

“That’s where you can move somewhat long distances, right? Just by thinking of the place you want to go?”

“Yes!” He clapped his hands and did an interesting little hop, clearly pleased with my answer. “You know a great deal about many things, Hailon Derne. While those two are very, very handy for fast movement, they don’t need anything other than minimal information to work. I was able to find you in Olinbourg, for example, because I knew of a nearby portal. Had you not told me the name of the place, I wouldn’t have found my way back easily, not even having your face as my focal point.” He flashed a wide smile, as though pleased he’d managed to get that key information out of me when it was most important. “And when we were leaving, I was going to use my ability to take us where you needed to go based on how I remember Ravenglen… feeling.”

“Feeling?”

“Yes. Every place has a certain way it leaves an impression on you, wouldn’t you agree? I think of that as how a town or region feels. Sometimes it’s a certain smell, or the way the wind moves through the trees. The color of the sky… could be anything.” He gestured to the sky with a flourish, his long fingers splayed wide. The lacquer on his nails had gotten so chipped it was nearly gone altogether. I wondered what he’d used and if there was a way for him to replace it soon. I rather liked the black gloss on his tan hands.

“That makes sense.” I accepted the water flask he offered, resisting the urge to make a face when he smiled and bobbed his head encouragingly. We’d made some progress as a traveling pair. He’d taken to suggesting things that would keep me more comfortable, and I was doing my best to not be quite so eager to ignore my needs in the interest of traveling faster.

“So going by foot is a lot harder, for obvious reasons.” His ears reddened. I could only assume that meant he was embarrassed. My ears burned terribly both when I told lies and when I was feeling shame about something. “It seems I underestimated how scarce horses and wagons might be, to start. I’ll admit I was excited by the notion of journeying slowly, but this much time by foot wasn’t really a consideration. I expected to have my wings, if nothing else.”

“I feel like somehow that may be my fault,” I muttered.

He frowned at me, the abnormal seriousness in his golden eyes intense. “Not at all. We’ll figure out the reason soon enough. My point is, I’m not used to having to navigate much. Directionality while being bound to the ground is an added layer of difficulty I should have anticipated but did not.”

“You don’t have to know what direction you’re going when you jump or anything?”

He shook his head, the flush that had started in his ears deepening and spreading to his cheeks as well. “No. Portals, sifting, those are a simple exercise in trust and visualization of your destination. There’s no walking, planning for camp, or tracking the way the sun and stars move required. And with wings, one can gain a distant perspective on things from the sky. Walking is far more complicated.”

“Ah. I see.” We fell into a quiet lull for a while. I thought about how little I’d ventured beyond my sleepy town settled up against the northern mountains. Despite that, I’d learned how to find north by the stars and to stay put if I ever wandered too far into the woods. I knew the sun rose in the east and set in the west, and the phases of the moon. A demon, one who didn’t even spend a significant amount of time on Earth wouldn’t have much reason to know those things. “Can I look at the map?” I asked. “When we stop for a rest, I mean.”

“Of course.” Seir smiled over at me, but his normal lighthearted personality was weighed down by his thoughts.

“I don’t think anything on here is very well scaled,” I said over a mouthful of the dry biscuit-like bread the widow had packed for us. “But that would be difficult with anything drawn this small. It seems to heavily favor the southern area too. There’s not much at all over near Vincara, and Austern is almost an afterthought altogether.” I turned the map his direction, tracing with my finger. “I think if we follow this line, the water, that’s probably our best bet.”

“Agreed.” Seir studied the little map a bit more, then rolled it up and put it away. “We should be able to follow alongside that creek or river until it disappears into the mountains. Once it starts to curve, we can go the opposite direction into the Valley and then north.”

“And avoid the ruins.” I nodded, glad to have some kind of plan even if that meant I was walking another several days.

“Sadly, yes.” He frowned. I understood his personality enough now to know that missing out on a vengeful spirit haunting a crumbled castle was almost certainly a terrible disappointment. “The closer we get to that many villages and towns, the more likely we’ll encounter wagons and other road traffic, perhaps even multiple roads to choose from.” This notion perked him back up, and we continued on until it was time to make camp again for the night.

Sitting around our little fire after a hasty rinse in the frigid stream with yet another version of campfire stew, I finally asked a question that lingered in the back of my mind.

“What is it that you do, exactly?”

Seir grinned, breaking off a chunk of the hard bread with his teeth and stirring it into the contents of his bowl to soften before answering. “I’m a prince. I have twenty-six legions under my command, though I don’t often use my title or my men these days. Because of how I’m able to travel, I’m mainly a messenger and given far more freedom to do what I like than many.”

“Is it like how humans have kings, princes, and all that?” I used some of the softened bread to soak up the last of my soup, wiping the bowl clean before I ate it.

“Sort of.” He illustrated a ladder with his hands as he listed titles off, top to bottom. “There are kings, dukes, princes, marquises, then earls, knights, and presidents. But the designations aren’t necessarily like they are here. For example, my brother Ipos is both a prince and an earl, and my other brother Tap is both a prince and a great president. You can be awarded several legions on a whim or have them taken away if someone else needs them more.” He shrugged. “It’s loosely merit based but also not. Every last one of us has a unique talent, and no single one of us is in charge, though a few have taken to management much better than others.” He smiled, a secretive lift to his lips.

“So, you’re both in charge of legions and also… not in charge?”

“Yes! Exactly.” He nodded, clearly pleased with my understanding, which if I were being honest, was less clear than before I asked. “Hell is like anywhere else. There are lots of things happening, plenty of people looking busy all the time. Things going on everywhere, but everyone is stuck in their own little life. Not much has clear reason or explanation beyond your individual area or assignment. Not even if you ask, most of the time. Does that make sense?”

“I suppose so.”

“Would you like to practice my sigil once or twice?” He was almost hesitant in the way he asked, scooting closer to my bedroll with a stick in his hand. “Just in case? You did a lovely job of it before, but you were copying from the book, right?”

“Yes. I should probably learn how to do it without an example to mimic.”

He beamed and drew it out in the dirt. “You try.”

I found my own twig to use and copied his mark. He’d made it look so effortless, but I needed lots of practice. I drew it several more times, making sure I had the twists and lines the same way he did.

“Here.” He came over and knelt behind me, his body pressed against my back. I held my breath as he placed his warm hand over mine on the stick, directing the flicks and swirls. My pulse pounded in my ears, the same electric feeling passing between us everywhere he touched me. I was suddenly hot despite the chill of the evening.

“It reminds me of a cloud, a little bit,” I said, tilting my head to the side. I’d thought it was a circle, but there were little bumps and spots where the design narrowed.

“Wings.” The word was warm against my hair. My chest ached again at the reminder that something so important to him had been suppressed somehow, and I didn’t even know why or how to fix it. “The outline is wings, then through the center is my name, more or less.” He stayed there for several long minutes, his heartbeat thumping against my shoulder blade, voice rumbling against my ribs as his hand directed mine. It took everything I had just to keep breathing somewhat normally.

We drew his sigil over and over again in the dirt, until I could do it without the example or his help. To my amusement, he used the tip of his tail to brush the designs away when we ran out of space, so we could start again.

Finally, he was satisfied with my proficiency and returned to his own blanket. I frowned, something right under my ribs burning like my dinner wasn’t sitting well.

“Should we practice a circle too?” he teased. “Are you tired of me? Ready to send me back now that you know exactly how to draw it out?”

“No, not quite yet.” Truth was, I already couldn’t imagine a day without him. Banishing him away from me was the furthest thing from my mind.

“That’s good.” His voice dropped to just above a whisper. “I’m not ready to leave.”

“Are the sigils all similar?” I asked, uncomfortable in the silence that had fallen between us.

“Yes and no. There’s a general idea that runs through them all. It’s a language. It would make more sense if you knew that alphabet going into things.”

“Will you teach me?” I blushed hard as the words came out of my mouth, then somehow more, when he responded.

Seir bowed his head, rolled his wrist several times in a posh wave and then looked straight through me, leaving a strange mix of anxiety and heat pooled in my stomach. “I’ll teach you whatever you like, my lady. All you need to do is ask.”