Demon Lord V - God Realm by T C Southwell Page A

smiled.
"No. Then she would fear me far more, but I could not prevent her
from using her power. I am not trying to make you take them off. I
know you cannot."
    "So you think
I should kill her?"
    Bane sighed
and spread his hands. "She will not harm you so long as she needs
you to guard her while she sleeps, but you cannot allow her to
enter another domain. No light god will let her in, anyway. She
will be a threat to all of you once we are out of this trap and she
feels that she does not need you anymore."
    "Then as soon
as we're out of it, we'll kill her."
    "And me?"
    Artan
hesitated. "No. As long as you wear the shackles, you're no threat
to us."
    Bane inclined
his head, then looked around as Rinath groaned. Artan stiffened,
his hand seeking his sword hilt, his glance flying to Bane.
    "I hope you're
feeling strong enough to deal with her now."
    "Not really,
but she does not know that."
    Rinath's eyes
opened, ink-black in her chalk-white face, and she writhed,
discovering that she was bound. She turned her head to glare at
Bane, and the glamour she had used to make herself look
unremarkable faded. The dark power had made her strikingly
beautiful, as it did all who wielded it. Her ebon hair and eyes
remained unchanged, but her features were revealed in all their
startling perfection. Artan drew a deep breath as she glanced at
him, turning the full power of her beauty upon him. The chains
melted and fell away, and she sat up, turning to Bane again. A
sweet smile curved her full red lips.
    "Did they
think they could bind me?"
    "Evidently."
    She raised a
hand to her head and grimaced. "Were you trying to kill me?"
    "Not
really."
    "You will not
get another chance."
    "You plan to
leave us?"
    Her eyes slid
away, a glint of fear in them. "No."
    "Then you will
do as you are told."
    She glanced at
the shackles. "You cannot make me."
    "And you
cannot kill them. You need them."
    "For now, but
I do not need you. I shall kill you at the first opportunity I
get." Her hand sought her dagger and found an empty sheath, which
did not surprise her.
    "I am sure you
will try."
    "I will
succeed. I shall summon Vertack again."
    Artan glanced
at Bane. "I thought you destroyed the demon?"
    Bane shook his
head. "He was vanquished, and went to a dark realm."
    Artan looked
alarmed. "She could summon a whole host of demons."
    "No, I do not
think so. If she could, she would have done so already. One demon
is all she can control, and only a minor one."
    "One is all I
need," she snarled.
    "I will not
allow you to summon one."
    "How will you
stop me? You have no power." Her lips curled in a contemptuous
sneer.
    Bane leant
forward. "Do not try me."
    Once again her
eyes glinted with fear, then she jumped up and walked over to the
fire, where she helped herself to meat and water. Artan leant
closer to Bane and muttered, "How will you stop her?"
    The Demon Lord
shrugged. "I have no idea."
    "You were
bluffing?"
    "Dark gods are
good liars."
    "Armorgan's
teeth!" Artan stared at Bane. "This is a dangerous game you're
playing."
    "It is not a
game."
    "Damn right
it's not. Our lives are at stake."
    "You are safe
for now, but when the time comes, you had best kill her when she is
not expecting it."
    Artan nodded,
and Bane glanced at Rinath, who tore at a chunk of charred meat.
"So demigods do not have the ability to summon ambrosia," he mused.
"I wonder how limited her powers are?"
    "Not limited
enough." Artan frowned at Bane. "How limited are yours?"
    "Pretty much
non-existent."
    "I wish I knew
if you were telling the truth."
    "So do I."
Bane looked down at his torn shirt and raised his hands to caress
the material, pressing the rents together. The cloth sealed up, and
in moments the shirt was restored. He laced it up. "She cannot
sense the trap turning, either."
    "How long
before we can leave?"
    "I need to
rest a while longer."
    Artan nodded,
watching the demigoddess.
     
    Kayos entered
an area of glowing golden rocks interlaced with rivers of fire, and
glanced back.