‘Very well,’ said the Warleader of Elvandar. ‘I can summon a dragon and land you within a short distance of your outposts.’
‘No need,’ said the Demon Master. ‘I can summon a flyer.’ He saw Pug’s expression, and quickly added, ‘It will be completely under my control and dismissed when I arrive.’
Tomas said, ‘Leave as you will, but tell your leaders that I will be along within three days. I will return to my Queen and then I will come to your new home. I will bring members of my lady’s council, and we shall sit with your Regent and discuss what we shall do should the Demon Legion come.
‘But your leaders would be well advised to reconsider their attitude towards those who may approach the boundaries of your encampment in the mountains, Gulamendis. Despite your people’s belief in their superiority, you are few in numbers, hard punished by a war seemingly without end, and you will need help. Those who come to you may do so inadvertently or out of curiosity, so treat them with respect.’ Tomas left it unsaid that should his message go unheeded by the Regent Lord, he would not be pleased, and even a Valheru of such strange origin was still a being to be respected, if not feared.
The elven Demon Master nodded, and bowed to those in the garden. To Amirantha he said, ‘We must sit down soon; we have much to discuss. There is much to learn.’
‘Agreed,’ said the Warlock, standing to bow slightly in respect.
As he made ready to depart, Gulamendis said, ‘There are so many things I would learn from you and your companions, Pug. But I am not typical of my people.’ He glanced at Tomas and said, ‘Your old friend may tell you about a conversation we shared, and you will realize that I am being honest when I say we will not welcome your people’s overtures until we know we are safe.’
He looked up at the sky above and said, ‘Home. It is a myth, yet here I stand; under the same sky looked upon by my ancestors.’
Looking again at Tomas he said, ‘And I am not the best interlocutor you could have chosen, Lord Tomas, for most of my people blame me and those like me for the demon invasion. No matter what we say, they will not believe there is a demon gate somewhere out there through which these creatures travel.’
‘Demon gate?’ asked Pug. ‘You said nothing of this.’
‘It’s almost a myth; a rumour. It is said that one Demon Master, prior to his execution, pleaded to tell the Regent’s Meeting that he knew the demons came into our realm through a demon gate. He never said how he knew this, though he may have gleaned the information from one of his summoned creatures. But it may present the hope that we who practise my craft hold to, that some day we shall be forgiven for this horror visited on our people.’
Calmly Pug said, ‘I know there’s a demon gate.’ For the first time Gulamendis’s composure cracked and hope played across his face. ‘How do you know?’
‘Because I have been there.’
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN - Determination
Sulamendis looked stunned.
Slowly he asked, ‘You’ve been there?’
‘It’s called Shila.’
‘Shila?’
‘The world from which the Saaur - a race now living on this world - were driven by the demons. It must be the location of the gate where Macros battled Maarg, the Demon King.’
Gulamendis sat down, now completely stunned. ‘Maarg?’
Amirantha said, ‘We’ve heard legends . . .’
Gulamendis stood, and conjured a spell. In a moment a twin to Amirantha’s imp stood before him, wrapped in dissipating smoke. The creature looked surprised to be surrounded by so many onlookers, and spun around before acknowledging Gulamendis. ‘Master?’ he asked, looking meek and pathetic.
Gulamendis said, ‘Tell us of Maarg.’
Instantly the imp shrieked in terror and spun, as if seeking a way out. ‘No!’ it cried in a shrill voice. ‘No! No! No!’
The creature was obviously terrified, but Gulamendis held out his hand. ‘Tell us of the Demon King!’ he commanded.
The imp looked around, a crazed feral cast to his features, his eyes hooded as if he sought escape or a route for attack. He crouched with clawed hands extended as if he would rend anything that he could reach. ‘No!’ he shrieked, a sound of rage and terror. ‘No! No! No!’ he kept repeating.
Gulamendis’s eyes narrowed and he said, ‘He has never disobeyed me before.’ He stuck out his left hand, palm up and incanted something in a language Pug and the others did not understand, but it caused a reaction from Amirantha, who seemed as shaken by the imp’s behaviour as the others. ‘Tell me!’ said the taredhel elf, and in closing his hand enacted some magic, for the imp doubled over holding his stomach, suddenly in terrible pain.
‘Master, no!’ cried the imp, the rage and fear in his eyes now gone, his expression one of pleading.