Clink
A demon male walks into a dark room. He bowed his head on the way in, so as not to catch his great horns on the door frame. He was tall of stature and grim faced.
The man entered, and before closing the door, found a simple, but rather spacious lodging with the aid of the light outside in the corridor. The instant he closed the door, the room resumed its state of being shrouded in darkness, as if unoccupied.
As if.
" Milord Administrator. " He knelt and called out. There was silence, no reply. The man raised his head, his eyes searching the dark. After awhile, he received a reply and turned his head in the direction of the voice.
" Go on. " Came a voice, deep and sage-like.
The man nodded.
" I come bearing a report Milord. The assassins that we recruited sir… it appears that they've failed. The boy lives. "
There was silence for awhile. And after this while, the voice in the shadow spoke again, deep with sorrow and lament. " I see."
" How do you know this? "
The demon bit his lips when he answered, heat gushing into his face." The leader of the assassins came to me, Milord." He struggled to keep his voice steady as he did so. " He was the only one to survive the battle. "
Again there was silence, and the man making the report clenched his fists. " Should I punish him, Milord? "
"Punish? " the voice questioned.
The man ground his teeth, his fury spilling over. " He did not escape the fight Milord, I am certain that he failed to participate at all."
The wooden floorboards groaned in protest as the man slammed his fist on the ground. " His actions disgrace us! I will see him executed as you will it milord!" He shouted.
The man listened as his voice barely echoed in the small room before fading to nothing. With it came a strange feeling of meaninglessness and calm. Strangely, it cooled him down and he quickly apologised, regaining his composure.
"… I see." Came the sagely voice after a moment of pause. " Execution won't be necessary, although there are things…that…"
The voice trailed off, never fully voicing its thoughts.
" Milord?" The man asked expectantly.
" Think naught of it. I was merely contemplating." There was the sound of a throat being cleared. " If our assassination has failed, then there is nothing we can do but accept this outcome. Let's us take our losses in str-"
" Milord, if you will it so, I can-" The man began to offer, but was instantly cut off.
" You can assassinate the kid?" The voice laughed, deep and full and with a knowing warmth. " If it were so necessary, then I wouldn't have spent the gold to hire assassins. I only give my favourite children the most crucial of tasks, and this isn't one of them."
The man nodded coolly, not feeling any emotion as he took the rejection with a small bow. He could sense his superior nodding as he mentally chewed on something.
" The child is a mere distraction that I would have liked to remove. I thought that the fewer the factors we had to deal with, the better." He explained. " But in hindsight, perhaps it was a blessing that he survived. His existence will tie down that human sorcerer of whom who know not of. Human ties and their intricacies and whatnot."
" In this sense, I suppose that the gold I spent wasn't truly wasted." He chuckled. Meanwhile, the man nodded. He was used to this behaviour from his superior as well as his unique way of referring to his fellows.
He had served him for the past two centuries.
" How should I be of service then, milord?" He inquired.
There was silence of several moments before the voice answered from the darkness. " Go to The Citadel of Order, it needs more fortification. A lot more. We must not let anything disturb your elder brother Verrater's work. He is a good child, and I know that he would have had finished the magic circle long before the date I'd given him."
His superior's next words were kind and filled with confidence. " If it is you, then I know that the heart of my ambitions is in good hands."
Despite his lord's praise, the demon were hung up on the words that he had said before that.
"That would simply mean that Verrater would be ready by the time the bureau attacks." The demon replied indignantly. " His incompetence and vainglory never fails to dissappoint. With your pardon Milord, it is obvious the bureau already knows when we originally intended to start off. Should he not be finished by now?"
The demon knew this Verrater, and every time he saw the lowborn's buck teeth, he had to urge to pluck them out. For the life of him, he couldn't understand why such an incompetent was allowed to stand on the same level as him.
" Shh..shh… patience my child. Patience." The voice hushed. " You, your sworn brother…and Verrater. You are all my sons and I love you equally. You have all borne witness to my exploits and my rise. You shouldn't underestimate your brother. If you don't trust him, do you trust me?"
Having his words turned against him, the demon jolted. " Of course Milord. You know that I would die for you."
The voice chuckled. " Then you know well how long I have waited for this day. Do you think that I would let it go to waste?"
As his superior said these words, peculiarly, the demon sensed a rare emotion from his usually stoic lord . He couldn't put his finger on it, but he knew that it was strange, and rare enough that he hadn't felt anything like it in the two centuries that he had called him 'Milord! . It was energetic, and bursting and welling, and something that was barely restrained. And in the darkness, he somehow got the feeling that if there was even a speck of light, he would be able to catch sight of a mouth full of white, full of confidence and glee.
Is Milord…excited?
The feeling vanished like a mirage, both from his wilful banishment of such ludicrous thoughts, and naturally by itself.
" You need not worry, I have hired powerful assistance in my endeavour. And it would be unwise to underestimate my power. I am no longer in my prime, but I am still the ultimate power in these parts. I am lord of this land, second only to a Sage and that, I will no longer be once I claim Sagehood for myself." The voice gloated, filled with lordly confidence.
It chuckled. " Have I put your fears to rest?"
The demon bowed. " I humbly ask for your permission to go to gather my brothers. Your will will be carried out at once."
The voice gave him its blessing and the demon made ready to rise to his feet. Then, he hesitated.
" Milord, about my sworn brother…" he trailed off.
" I heard. It appears that he will not be present for our victory. This was why I was concerned about that human mage that the bureau recruited. He was dispatched rather nastily, and in a place that did not suit his station." The amiable voice from before was now filled with displeasure.
" You believe her to have dispatched him, milord?" The demon questioned.
" It is likely. There was a strange magic on his corpse when I looked at it. But we must not be hung up on this. Your brother would not be pleased to know that he died for an empty cause." The voice said in disapproval.
" I agree milord, my brother would want us to push ahead." Said the demon without hesitation. He agreed plainly and fully with his superior. " However, as his sworn brother, could you allow me the honor of dispatching the human mage? I wish to see my sworn brother vindicated and avenged."
There was a small expanse silence as his question hung in the air before the voice of his lord replied.
" Very well. I shall allow you this right. But claim it only in battle, and take care not to jeopardise your duty. I don't believe that brother will be pleased to see that. "
" I will see to it, Milord."
The voice then fell silent, and in the darkness, the demon's acclimatised eyes could see the outline of his lord's great horns bobbing up and down in satisfaction. He was stroking his beard thoughtfully as he did so, as if trying to remember something.
" Is there anything else you need of me, Milord?" He queried.
After a long stare, his lord replied: " No. There isn't. You make take your leave now, Rebus."
The demon rose to his feet, bowed once, and left through the door. When he left, he threw a furtive look over his shoulder and peculiarly, in the light that was let in from his opening of the room's door, caught a brief glimpse of his lord's colore expression. His eyes were a stormy grey, as they always were. But today, it they seemed heavier than usual.
If I am not mistaken, he tasked Remus( The demon's sworn brother who was slain) to bring the boy to meet him yesterday. Is he still thinking of their encounter? No. What could a mere child, a human one at that, offer to Milord that provokes such thought?
The demon closed the door and headed for the stairs that lead to the bustling ground floor. He took each descending step slowly, his mind far away, thinking about his lord's mood.
That was when a sudden impact collided with his shoulder and nearly tipped him off balance. Surprised, the tall demon momentarily flailed for purchase. One of his legs shot back instinctively, stabilising him.
Although a mere fall down such of short flight of stairs would pose little damage to him, it would still hurt. Physically, and in terms of damage to his pride. A proud True demon like him! Knocked down by some low-born, flea infested, sewer digging scum!
Immediately, the demon snarled. His hand short out in a black blur, and seized the culprit's collar, pulling him close.
" And where the fuck do you think you're going?" The demon glared at the culprit who had almost knocked him over with eyes as murderous blood stained daggers. Then his eyes widened slightly as he sized up his opponent, who contrary to his expectation, was no low-born, sewer digging scum. His grip on the man's collar unconsciously loosened.
The man was tall and broad-shouldered, even taller than him when he stood on a whole step lower. His proud horns were the colour of alabaster, blending with the milky colour of his hair and giving him the distinct feel of nobility. Rebus felt a seed of doubt sprout in his heart as he reconsidered if this confrontation was worth it. The man was dressed respectably as well, much like a scholar, meaning that a battle of words at which their prides would be at stake was likely.
A second later, he made up his mind.
" Are you mute? Answer me!" He shouted in the man's face. Where he had expected the man to lean back or cower, this pretty bastard didn't so much as blink. That made him even more peeved.
Just when Rebus was about to launch into another tirade, the man's slender fingers gently wrapped themselves around his hand. His other hand opened up in a placating gesture. Then he spoke:
" Pardon me, good sir. It appears I have wronged you. Please let me apologise."
Hearing his admission of submission, Rebus couldn't help but feel smug. A grin spread over his face.
" I am told that I am quite cumbersome. Please understand. Ah, let me treat you to a drink as an apology." The man offered. However, Rebus wasn't having any part in that.
Why the hell would I want your peasant drink? Do you think that is enough take make this up to me?
Rebus could see the hesitance in the man's narrowed eyes. However, his politeness when answering was still impeccable.
" Then pray tell, how should I make this up to you, sir?"
Rebus smirked. In truth, he hadn't thought of what he wanted. He had simply wished to gloat, but now, faced with this question, he found himself having no response. And somehow, that irked him. Backing down from this was a loss in a battle of wits, and Rebus's pride would usually never allow that.
However, he was on standing orders to summon his brethren and assist that buck-teethed lowborn be prepared to the incoming onslaught that would inevitably come from the bureau. The longer this stretched on, the longer he was delaying action. And that, that was treasonous, something that Rebus admitted he would rather die than commit.
" You can make it up to me by walking straighter, you fool. Next time you hit someone, you may not be so lucky." He growled as he shouldered past the white haired stranger. " Just pray you don't run into me again."
The white haired stranger nodded. " I will keep that in mind." His tone was still even and respectful, irking Rebus even more that he was unable to even intimidate this stranger even one bit. He would have loved to stay around for a long 'talk' but…alas, duty calls.
With a huff, Rebus rounded the bend of the stairs and left the white haired stranger behind. As he left the inn, he shot a gaze up at the second floor where he knew his lord was lodging. Dismissing any distracting thought, Rebus shook his head and walked away.
However, it was only a while later that the inn re-entered his mind.
Rebus looked back as a tremendous roar heralded a heaven piercing pillar of flame that rose from where he had been mere minutes ago. Even from a decent distance away, rebus could feel the heat on his skin at it reducing all to ash.