Citadel of Demons Page 3

  He emerged from the cave, blinking in the sunlight. His captors did not look any more prepossessing in daylight. Strange colours blotched their skins. The taint of blight lay heavy upon them. He caught its sickly sweet reek in his nostrils

  He studied them with his sorcerer’s senses. Yes. There was blight. Magic had been worked on these creatures. The spawn of the Old Ones for certain, he thought.

  The creature gestured for him to follow. It did not look back. It seemed aware of where he was without turning its head.

  Balthazar wondered what sort of senses the sand demons possessed. Surely, they did not have eyesight like normal human beings. Perhaps they felt tremors in the ground like certain lizards. Perhaps they used the same magical means of seeing as many demons.

  He was only trying to distract himself from the terror of his situation. He did not know what these creatures were capable of. He did not know what they were going to do with him. All he knew was that he was their prisoner.

  Briefly, he considered making a bolt for it across the rocks but where would he go?

  These sand demons moved slowly but with great certainty. He could not see any signs of gear upon their persons. They were not carrying water bottles or backpacks or any sort of supplies. Obviously, they had no need of such things.

  His captors headed down towards the open desert, making their way towards a patch of sand that shifted as if the ground was shaking.

  He stumbled and almost fell. A hard hand caught him. Rough hide abraded his flesh. He pulled his arm away. He was not sure whether the monster had intended harm. Perhaps it was only trying to help but he did not want to spend any more time than necessary within reach of those poisoned barbs.

  The sand demon stepped away from him. Balthazar felt a surge of hope. The creature’s gesture gave the impression that it might not be hostile. Perhaps they’re only preserving him for the feast. Once again, he considered bolting. If he’d had anything like his full strength he would have done it.

  They reached the edge of the rocks and looked down at the seething sand.

  Was it some kind of monster? Was some great worm about to erupt from the desert and swallow them whole?

  Balthazar doubted that. These creatures were natives. They did not seem like beings who would put themselves in harm’s way needlessly.

  The sand ceased to swirl. Large creatures erupted from beneath its surface. They were flat, bat-like, resembling the manta rays of the sea. They floated just above the ground, rippling like waves.

  Something about them suggested the sand demons. It was as if they had some common ancestor. Perhaps they came from the same vat, Balthazar thought sourly.

  Each sand demon leapt on the back of a great ray. They clutched at the sensor-like horns at the front of the creatures and lay flat on the rays’ backs. One by one, the sandrays moved off, floating just above the ground, carrying a single sand demon as a passenger.

  Steeds, Balthazar thought. This was how the sand demons moved through the desert. The rays carried them between the destinations. The creatures must be magical. Otherwise, they could not float in the air the way they did. Perhaps there was something else, some sort of flotation chamber within their bodies. The Old Ones were good at that sort of flesh weaving.

  The last of the sand demons climbed onto a ray and gestured for him to follow. It did not lie flat but sat upright. Balthazar shook his head. He was not going to get onto the back of such a beast. He was not going to expose himself to the scorching rays of the sun. He was going to stay here.

  The sand demon extruded one of the long poison-tipped spikes from its forearm. It levelled it at him. An image of the spike flickering through the air as if thrown like a spear came into Balthazar’s mind. He shrugged and half climbed, half fell onto the sandray.

  The creature sped across the desert. Balthazar clung on to the spikes on the back of the sand demon rider. He was afraid of scratching himself and he was afraid that some of the caked poison might make its way through his flesh but he had no option. The creatures moved so swiftly and undulated so much that it was the only way he could remain mounted. The beast did not seem capable of true flight; rather it skimmed along just above the dunes.

  The sand demons hooked onto the sandrays’ scaly hides with their own bristling spines. It was a strange sort of symbiosis. No doubt these beings had been created to work together.

  He raised his head so that he could look around. The desert was reddish-brown, the colour of a rusty blade. Alchemical colours layered the rocks. Some of them were bright poisonous blue. Some glittered yellow as gold. Metallic rainbows lay trapped within the passing mesas. The land looked tortured by wind and erosion.

  Balthazar’s eyes felt dry. His skin burned in the hot sunlight. Thirst and dust parched his throat. He could easily die out here if this journey took too long.

  “How much further?” he asked.

  The sand demon did not answer. He wondered if the creatures had any sort of language that he could understand. How did they communicate with each other?

  Perhaps they did so by gesture. Perhaps by changing the colours of their carapaces. The surface of their skins reacted like those of a chameleon. Now they were the same hue as the sandrays, blending in with the creatures they rode. From a distance, Balthazar guessed it would look as if sand demon and sandray were the same organism.

  He asked his question again and got no response. He held on grimly as the sandray dropped down a slope. Its speed increased as it fell. At the last second, the creature pulled up and sped along what looked like a dried-up riverbed.

  Had there been water here once? The surface of the world was covered in places that had once been different.

  Even as that thought occurred to him a blinding light appeared ahead. He was looking at a vast shattered mirror, a plain of glass from which the sun’s light reflected brutally. He felt certain that the sand demons were taking him well off his chosen route, but he was in no position to object.

  He closed his eyes against the glare even as the sandray moved onto the shimmering surface. It did not slow the creature down nor did any of the sand demons show any signs of discomfort. Balthazar supposed that was one advantage of having no eyes. He kept his own tightly shut.

  He licked his parched lips. They were cracking. He prayed to Xothak that this did not go on for much longer. His fingers seemed frozen around the spines. He wondered if he’d be able to unclench them even if he wanted to. He knew he should try and rest but the strangeness of his situation and the terror of anticipation made that impossible.

  Balthazar lost track of time. Slowly the sky darkened and up ahead a cluster of huge rocks loomed. He was reminded of the boulders surrounding the base of Dhargon’s Beacon. This place lacked the gigantic Elder World artefact. It was merely a mesa. In the rock face, caves loomed.

  The sandrays halted on the edge of the stone islands. One by one the sand demons disengaged from their backs. His own mount was the last to halt. The demon stood up and Balthazar rose with it, still clinging to its spines. He managed to unclench his fists but his legs gave way beneath him and he tumbled and fell flat against the rock. The impact was stunning. The sand demons merely watched him. None of them came to his aid.

  He regretted that earlier he had shrugged off the assisting hand. No one seemed inclined to extend one now. He staggered to the rocks and followed his captors towards the entrance of the cave.

  He stepped down into darkness and only managed to keep himself upright by holding onto the walls. The tunnel curved first to the left and then to the right. He almost stumbled as it sloped downwards. He sensed the movement of sand demons in front and behind of him. Once again, there was no chance of escaping. Not that there was any place for him to go. He was even deeper in the desert.

  Dim lights sprang into being. He was surprised to discover that it came from glowing fungus, some form of bioluminescence. The creatures did need light after all. He filed the information away in case he ever got the chance to use it.
He sensed magical power in the air, a great deal of it, all tainted by blight.

  They emerged into a huge cave. All around lay more lit openings. One by one the sand demons disappeared through them as if heading towards their own personal caves. The largest gestured for him to follow and he staggered along behind it.

  He moved down the shadowy corridor until they entered a smaller, more comfortable cave. On the floor were carpets made of some alien substance. There were cooking utensils. There were plates and cups. There were flasks containing what must be water and wine. There was even a tray containing sweetmeats.

  Without asking permission he threw himself forward and grabbed one of the jugs. He did not care whether the creature struck him down with a poison spike. He would rather die than put off drinking for even a few more seconds.

  He raised the jug to his lips and chugged it down. The water was the sweetest thing he had ever tasted.

  The sand demon stood there as if curious as to what he would do next. Balthazar, forgetting all dignity, stooped and picked up a pastry from the tray. He stuffed it into his mouth as swiftly as he could. It tasted honey sweetened. The pastry itself was flaky and good.

  Finally, Balthazar remembered his manners and he turned and gave a bow to the sand demon. Its skin ripped like a cocoon from which a butterfly was about to emerge.

  Now it comes, Balthazar thought. What new horror is this? Even as he watched, the rocky carapace split asunder and he saw brown flesh within. It dropped away like the shed skin of a snake and he found himself looking at a beautiful naked woman.

  Chapter Four

  Around them, the land grew gradually more barren. Kormak had given the reins over to Rhiana so that she could take a turn at driving. It distracted her from her dark thoughts.

  The farmlands lay behind. Stubby grass covered only part of the wastes. More and more rocks emerged from the soil. The earth had a parched look to it. Kormak doubted that any crops would grow here.

  Lizards watched as they passed. In the distance, dust clouds marked the passage of herds of wild horses, making their way among the arroyos. Perhaps some of them belonged to the desert tribes who made their homes out here.

  Kormak enjoyed drinking in the strange beauty of the place. He took his pleasures where he could find them. This landscape reminded him of the Graveyard of Angels and the old Siderean colonies in the southern continent.

  There were differences. Here the air was thinner. The sun seemed brighter. Clouds were even less common. There was no sense of the presence of a nearby sea as there often was in the Southlands.

  Behind him, the marines grumbled, as they’d been doing the whole long day. Kormak had never yet met a soldier who didn’t like to complain about something. If it wasn’t the officers, it was the food. If it wasn’t the food, it was the pay. If it wasn’t the pay, it was their employers.

  Mostly the marines grumbled about the demon’s attack in Helgard. They had lost friends and comrades. Many had a haunted look to their eyes. Kormak would have to keep an eye on them. Sometimes men were touched by the darkness and twisted by it. If any of them showed signs of turning to the Shadow, he would have to do something.

  Admiral Zamara rode up beside the wagon. He smiled down at Rhiana. He gave the impression of enjoying himself. Kormak supposed that command must always look confident. Zamara took that part of his job seriously.

  “We’re making good time,” the Admiral said. “You never know we might overtake that bastard Balthazar out here.”

  “You never know,” Kormak said. He didn’t want to contradict Zamara. He didn’t want to do anything that would lower morale. He just did not share Zamara’s confidence that things would go their way.

  “Smile,” Zamara said. “This will be over sooner than you think.”

  “That’s what I’m worried about,” Kormak said.

  Rhiana looked at the Admiral and said, “You won’t shift him from his gloomy mood. He likes to look on the dark side of things. He is an Aquilean.”

  “I know it,” Admiral Zamara said.

  “I’ve done this before,” Kormak said.

  “And you have to let us know it, don’t you?” Zamara said. “If we are lucky, we’ll find the corpse of Balthazar somewhere along this trail. The wall sentries claimed he headed off in the direction of Dhargon’s Beacon. He didn’t take any water with him. He didn’t take any food. There’s not a lot of hope for him crossing the desert.”

  “He’s a sorcerer,” Kormak said. “He’ll find a way.”

  “You had to remind me of that, didn’t you?” Zamara said. He didn’t bother to keep his voice down. He liked the troops to hear his joshing tone. He thought it did something for morale.

  “Knowing him, he’s probably found allies,” Kormak said. “He seems to locate them in the most unlikely places.”

  “I know what you mean,” Zamara said. “I would not have expected him to have had as much support as he did among the officers of Helgard. Of course, it’s hard to tell how many of them really supported him because so many were dead by the end of our visit. It’s just as well you’re not a Siderean, Sir Kormak. You’d probably have a lot of angry relatives challenging you to duels.”

  “They’ll probably challenge me when I get back,” Kormak said. “I know what you Sidereans are like.”

  “This reminds me of home,” Zamara said, staring off into the distance.

  Kormak looked at him.

  “You’ve never been to the central highlands of Siderea, have you, Sir Kormak? It looks a lot like this. It’s hot and it’s bright and it’s barren. My father’s lands were mostly like this. He did have some more fertile holdings down by the coast but mostly it was arid wastes he owned. Barely fit for goats and snakes.”

  Zamara seems to be in a nostalgic mood.

  “You could always ask the King-Emperor to grant you this land,” Kormak suggested.

  “If I was unlucky, he’d give it to me,” Zamara said. “This is not a place I would like to settle. There are some nice bits of ground closer to Helgard. No doubt the officers have all claimed them already.”

  “Isn’t it possible that this land belonged to somebody else before you Sunlanders came?” Rhiana said.

  “I’m not a Sunlander,” Kormak said.

  Zamara looked at her in mock outrage. “Are you suggesting that Siderean noblemen would steal land belonging to somebody else? How could you, Captain Rhiana?”

  “It may come as a surprise to you,” Rhiana said, “but it has been known to happen.”

  “It happened here,” Zamara said, suddenly serious. “This land belonged to the Old Ones before the Solari came and who knows who it belonged to before they took it. The history of the world consists of people stealing land from others. It hasn’t stopped yet and I doubt it ever will.”

  “That’s not something I ever thought I would hear a Siderean nobleman admit,” Kormak said.

  “Most of us are more aware of it than you would think, Sir Kormak.” Zamara tilted his head to one side and studied a large group of rocks in the distance. “That looks like a good spot to make camp. We’ll get there with a couple of hours to spare before sunset. We can build some cook fires and make sure the place is fortified.”

  Zamara was more uneasy than he let on. He was taking all the precautions that he would take in hostile country. Looking at the land, that was not so surprising. He would not be surprised to see angry locals leaping from behind those boulders.

  He had spent most of his life fighting in inhospitable parts of the world. He didn’t see why this should be any different. Ahead of them Dhargon’s Beacon loomed in the distance. They would reach it tomorrow if they were lucky, and then, according to Anders the real dangers of the journey would begin.

  * * *

  Kormak and Rhiana stood on top of the jumble of boulders. The camp lay perhaps a hundred feet below them. The sound of men talking in low voices drifted up to them as did the smoke of the fire. They stood hand in hand looking at the sky. In the dist
ance, Dhargon’s Beacon glowed. Night transformed it into a tower of shimmering light. Rhiana stared at it for a moment and then looked up at the sky.

  “The stars look different here,” Rhiana said. “The patterns are not so familiar.”

  Kormak understood why that made her uneasy. She was a sailor, used to navigating by the glittering stars. She seemed listless. He felt excited because he was looking out over a strange landscape.

  In the light of the moon, the land rolled away into the distance, shadowy and bleak. He held Rhiana’s hand in his own. It was not something he would normally have felt comfortable doing. He did not like having his movement restricted but in this place and at this time it felt right.

  “What are you thinking?” Rhiana asked.

  “I was thinking that we’re a long way from home.”

  “That we are.” There was an odd note in her voice. Kormak realised their location was even stranger for her than it was for him. She had been born beneath the waters of the ocean. He wondered what it must be like for her standing here on the roof of the world. “Did you ever see the stars when you lived beneath the waves?”

  She looked at him sidelong and laughed. “That’s a strange question.”

  “Are you going to answer it?”

  “Of course, I saw the stars.”

  “They were visible from the bottom of the sea?”

  “I did not spend all of my childhood on the ocean floor. We often came to the surface. We often looked around. We often came to land.”

  “Was that near Port Blood?”

  “The ocean is full of islands,” she said. Her voice was soft and thoughtful. “There are many places the Sunlanders have never found. There are many beautiful empty beaches. There are many wild islands. We used to sometimes visit them. We never went too far from shore though. The air always seemed thin and strange when I was a child.”

  “Were your parents with you?”

  “Yes. We travelled in clans. My people are nomadic. They pursue the great shoals of fish. Sometimes they follow the whales on their migration. Sometimes we moved because of disasters.”