Free Demon Lord V - God Realm by T C Southwell Page B

the ground shivered
again, making her stagger. A dull rumbling filled the air, and
Sarrin cried out, trying to drag Bane towards the rest of the
group. With a grating of soil and rock, the earth beneath Bane's
feet ripped open. He staggered back, and his foot slipped off the
edge of the crevasse. For a moment he teetered, waving his arms,
then he flung himself forward, but his other foot slid into the
crevasse and his hips hit the edge as he fell.
    Sarrin clung
to his hand as he slid into the widening fissure, dragging her with
him. Bane clawed at the dust, seeking purchase in its shifting
substance. Artan threw himself down on his chest and grabbed Bane's
other hand, but Sarrin lost her grip and fell back with a cry of
despair. A dark abyss yawned beneath Bane, exhaling noxious fumes
and heat. Ethra crawled to Artan's side and gripped Bane's free
hand, digging in her heels as she tried to stop his slide into the
crevasse.
    Right at the
edge, she found purchase on the rocks, and between them they
stopped his slide, but he swung from their grip on his wrists. The
rumbling and shaking died away, leaving an eerie silence that only
the harsh panting of the two people who clung to Bane's hands
broke. He glanced down at the dim orange glow far beneath him, then
looked up at Artan and Ethra. They hung on with all their strength,
refusing to let him fall. A slight, sad smile curved Bane's lips as
his eyes filled with resignation.
    "Let me
go."
    "No!" Ethra
shouted, getting a better grip on his wrist by hooking her fingers
into the shackle.
    Artan glanced
at her in surprise. "You want to save him now?"
    "Yes, now
pull!"
    Ethra heaved
mightily, and Artan followed suit, but even their best efforts did
not raise Bane an inch.
    "You cannot
save me," Bane murmured. "If you do not let go you will fall
too."
    Ethra gritted
her teeth as Bane's weight tore her fingers from the shackle,
leaning forward to renew her grip. Artan slid towards the lip of
the crevasse, unable to find purchase as Ethra had done. Juvo ran
up and grabbed Artan's legs, slowing his slide, then one of the
soldiers took hold of Ethra's arms and threw his weight into the
struggle. The other soldier crawled between them and tried to reach
one of Bane's arms, but he was too far away. He took hold of Artan
instead, and between the five of them they held onto Bane, but they
could not pull him up, no matter how hard they tried.
    Bane was at a
ninety degree angle to them now, dangling over the abyss. Ethra
hung on at its edge, her feet braced against the rocks, her arms
feeling as if they would be torn out at the shoulders. She panted
from pain and effort, her heart hammering, and Artan grimaced as
his burnt hands suffered from gripping Bane's wrist. Bane glanced
down again, then raised his head to look at Ethra. The hot wind
that blew up from below lifted the jet wings from his cheeks, and
his eyes glowed.
    "Let me
go."
    "No!"
    Artan cursed
as his hand slipped, his fingers losing their strength. "We can't
hold him!"
    "We must!
Pull, damn you!"
    "It's no good,
Ethra!" Artan tried to renew his grip, but Bane slid further over
the edge, and Artan almost went over too. The soldiers pulled him
back, but his hands slipped off Bane's wrist.
    "No!" Ethra
wailed as Bane's full weight swung on her slender arms, her
ligaments popping. Artan grabbed her as she followed Bane into the
gulf, pulling her back. She sobbed in despair as her fingers slid
free of the cuff, clung to his hand for a moment, then lost their
grip. She lunged after Bane as he fell, and Artan hung onto her
legs, barely stopping her from going after him.
    "No!" Ethra
cried as Bane fell towards the red glow far below, his arms spread
wide, his cloak closing around him like crimson-lined black wings.
The manacles glimmered, and his eyes closed as his hair swept over
his face in a gleaming ebon veil.
    Artan hauled
her back, helped by Juvo and the soldiers, and they dragged her
away from the crevasse. She shook them off and