‘Neither of them are worth saving,’ said Amirantha. His eyes flickered between Kaspar and the others, and with a twitch of his head, he indicated he needed the General to play along. ‘Still, they know some things that might prove interesting.
‘Belasco, I can only assume you’re controlling this monster inside of you for two reasons, your usual spite and self-serving interest, and because you believe you have some way out of this impasse?’
‘You know me well, brother. But until revealing these things works to my advantage, I think I shall keep my reasoning to myself.’
‘Well, you always were unwilling to share.’
‘Blame Sidi. He was always beating me and taking my things.’
‘True, and both of you treated me the same until I started summoning help.’
‘That was an unfortunate day,’ said Belasco’s voice.
‘Warlock!’ came the demon’s voice. ‘Release me and I shall make you a prince of men, my first servant on this world.’
Amirantha sighed, and shrugged at Kaspar. ‘Sorry, Dahun, but experience tells me your promises are small currency.’
Belasco said, ‘Actually, he might keep that one. He doesn’t plan to eat everything in sight. He wants to settle in and run things. That was our original arrangement, and he has been as good as his word.’
Amirantha closed his eyes as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. He sighed slowly and then said, ‘Until you betrayed him,’ he said flatly.
‘Of course.’
Amirantha was silent for a moment, then said, ‘So, if I kill you, the demon prince inside you is freed, but if I let you live…well, sooner or later you’ll die anyway as you can’t eat or drink, unless you tell me of your plan.’
‘Not yet.’
Amirantha saw Magnus and Sandreena begin to rouse and said, ‘Speaking of Sidi…’
‘Yes,’ said Belasco.
‘He’s dead.’
‘Pity,’ said Belasco.
‘Why? You hated him.’
‘Because I wanted to be the one to kill him; Mother may have been an evil witch, but she was our mother.’
Amirantha glanced at Kaspar who said, ‘Now that I’ve met all three of you, I can just imagine what she must have been like.’
‘Who speaks?’ asked Belasco. ‘I glimpsed him before, but he keeps moving.’
‘Kaspar, formerly Duke of Olasko, and now General of the Army in Muboya.’
‘I’d bid you welcome, General, but I suspect you’re not here to wish me well.’
‘Exactly,’ said Kaspar. ‘We came here to kill you.’
‘Ah, always murder in everyone’s heart.’ That was followed by an evil chuckle.
‘Now what?’ Kaspar asked Amirantha.
But it was Belasco who spoke. ‘We wait until I decide what course of action is in my best interests.’
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN - Attack
PUG UNLEASHED ANOTHER SPELL.
Demons of all shapes and sizes were flung back, and Pug shouted, ‘Something is very wrong.’
Gulamendis shouted over the shrieks and bellowing, ‘What?’
‘I’m not sure, but I sense something strange.’
Laromendis was so exhausted he was nearly unable to stand; he had conjured every conceivable illusion he had learned over the years. His myriad of threats, taredhel sentinels, animals and monsters of every stripe, had distracted and delayed the onslaught of demons long enough to give Pug time to unleash his considerable power.
A voice from behind said, ‘Do you need some help?’
Pug turned and his face became alive with relief, as he beheld Magnus standing there. ‘Are you up to it?’
Nodding, he said, ‘They used a spell binding net on Sandreena and myself, but the effects have worn off.’ Then his eyes narrowed and he said, ‘And I’m quite angry.’
He moved to stand between Gulamendis and Pug, and with outstretched hands released a blast of crimson energy that moved like a thundering breaker on the beach. The demons, irrespective of size and shape, were hurled back again. Those at the rear of the pack were cast down into the vast pit from which the green energy rose.
A shout from behind caused the remaining demons to turn and see what new threat approached them. Into the emerald glow cast by the tower of energy ran armoured humans, each dressed in the garb of Roldem’s Royal Marines. Adept at battle on ship and land, they were the island kingdom’s toughest combat soldiers. Leading the charge was a familiar face, though his usual boyish grin was missing. Jommy Killaroo, now Knight of the King’s Court of Roldem and Captain of Special Services to the King, shouted orders as he raised his sword and lashed out at a man-sized demon standing before him.
Pug let out a long breath. ‘Three hundred marines from Roldem will keep them busy until the rest get here, which should only be minutes now.’
As if to punctuate his words, another shout from outside was followed by the arrival of Tad, another of Pug’s adopted grandsons, leading a contingency of the Prince’s Own, from Krondor. Their orders were simple; kill every demon in sight.
Pug said to Magnus, ‘Save your strength. We may need it soon.’
Magnus nodded, ‘My tantrum was satisfying, but fatiguing.’