Free Demon Lord VII - Dark Domain by T C Southwell Page A

She might
even be with him now. He knows there is another light god in this
domain now. He sensed your Eye. They could set a trap.”
    Kayos dismissed
the Eye, rose and paced in a circle, his head bowed. “I have
thought of that. I will not give him time to summon his mate, and
if she is there and takes hold of me, I will Move her into the
chamber.”
    “And you will
be stunned.”
    “But the
mortals will not be able to kill me. They will not even know I am
there.”
    “You expect me
to leave you lying in there until you wake up? That will take
hours. I cannot go in there to carry you out, even invisible. Their
machines will see me.”
    “Come now,
Bane, you are thinking like a human again. You can slow time, even
stop it. What chance do mortals have against you?”
    “You will still
be unconscious for many hours, defenceless unless I guard you.”
    Kayos nodded.
“But there will only be one dark god left, and you can take care of
him.”
    “And if I am
mortally wounded, Drevarin cannot heal me. Besides, we do not know
for certain that there are only three dark gods in this domain.
What if there are four?”
    “We are over
thinking this. The chances of everything going wrong are slim.
Consult your demon and find out if there are four, then.”
    “If he knows.
He was supposed to report to me if he found more.”
    “He might have
sniffed out a rumour, which will still help.”
    Bane inclined
his head and Moved, rematerialising in a field of dry grass that
one of the unnatural forests surrounded. “Eslason, come to me.”
    A black circle
formed on the ground in front of him and spread, tongues of foul
fire turning the grass to ash, the soil sizzling as it burnt. A mud
form shot up from its centre and took on the appearance of a
handsome dark-haired man clad in a cream shirt, black leather
trousers and a matching jacket. Several gold chains and an ornate
belt completed his outfit. Demons did love garish finery, Bane
mused, and Eslason’s was quite reserved by their standards.
    Eslason bowed.
“Lord.”
    “Are there more
than three dark gods in this domain?”
    “Counting
you?”
    “No.”
    “I have only
found three so far,” the demon said, “but there are rumours of a
fourth, possibly a beast god. I have not had much time yet.”
    “If gods were
as slow as demons, you would still be nothing more than a pocket of
dark power in the bedrock of this domain.”
    “I have their
names and locations.”
    “I do not need
them now. I have already found them, and they are no longer where
you think they are.”
    “Then you do
not need me anymore?”
    “I never needed
you,” Bane said. “I made use of you to accomplish a tedious task.
Who was Parsimon?”
    “Scryon.”
    “Continue
searching for more dark gods, and if you find any, report to
me.”
    Eslason bowed.
“As you command, Demon Lord.”
    “Go.”
    The demon sank
back into the ground, and Bane Moved to the mess hall where Kayos
waited. The Grey God looked up at his arrival, raising his brows in
enquiry.
    Bane settled on
his couch. “Only rumours of a fourth, a beast god, although how
hard he looked is anyone’s guess. The one we defeated was
Scryon.”
    “Then we do as
I said.”
    “I still do not
like it.”
    “You are a
pessimist, Bane.”
    “I am cautious.
I know what dark gods are like. I am one.”
    “You are more
human than them, and they are evil,” Kayos said.
    “So why do I
not just go there and tear that bastard apart?”
    “That would be
reckless. You could be hurt. He will call his mate, and then you
will have to fight two of them.”
    “I have done it
before, and it was not in a light realm.”
    The Grey God
nodded. “Yes, but you were hurt, and now we have time to plan and
options to consider. If two of them attack you, they will Move you
to the dark realm, and you will be in grave danger. This way will
be far easier, and safer.”
    “If it
works.”
    “It will.”
Kayos sighed. “It is times like these when I wish you would