He just told me that whatever waited in this forest was better than what waited for me anywhere else.” Lily shook her head and shrugged. “I don’t know what he meant by that but … I know this all sounds crazy, but I know he was trying to protect me.”
“Did he make plans to meet you again?” Wick asked.
“No.” A pain tore through her heart as she realized she might never see him again. The thought had occurred to her as soon as he’d left, but she hadn’t let herself worry about it. It hurt too much.
“You think he rescued you?” Wick asked, bewildered and unbelieving.
“Yes. I suppose he did.”
“That doesn’t make any sense.” Wick shook her head and looked back at his jacket. “I’m not sure it’s even possible. They’re incapable of altruistic actions.”
“They?” Lily stood up, setting her bowl on the floor before walking over to Wick. “What do you know about him? Why don’t you trust him?”
“I don’t know anything about him personally,” Wick clarified. She lowered her head and attempted to go back to writing in her grimoira, or to at least look like that’s what she was doing.
“But you know something .” Lily looked at her plaintively. “Wick, please.” She pulled out the chair and sat down across from her.
“All I know is that his jacket smells like brimstone.” Wick wanted to forget the conversation and wished she’d never brought it up at all, but Lily stared expectantly at her. Sighing, she set her pen inside her book and pushed it aside. “Did your mother ever tell you about irins and daemons?”
“My mother refused to talk to me about anything like that,” Lily shook her head. “The only things I know I overheard from the servants talking.”
“They’re not the most reliable of sources.” Wick pushed a stray strand of hair behind her ears and looked down at the table. “I suppose Iris planned on waiting until you were old enough to explain all of this, but she died before she had the chance. I can’t fault her for that, but she’s left you so unprepared.”
“Unprepared for what?” Lily asked.
“Our world.” Wick smiled thinly at her. “Before the Earth belonged to man, good and evil lived openly, locked in an eternal battle with each other. Their immortality made them weary of the same fights, so they devised a wager to settle it forever. Whoever won would have complete reign over the Earth, and whoever lost would be banished for all of eternity.”
“So they created man to settle a bet?” Lily raised a skeptical eyebrow.
“So the story goes,” Wick nodded. “The most cunning daemon was chosen on the side of evil, and the most valiant irin was chosen on the side of good. They were granted powers and privileges to help them, and while one of them was immortality, it came at a price. They had to make sacrifices to stay alive. For the irin, that meant a chaste life, free of any human pleasures, but for the daemon, that meant something far more deviant.”
“What do you mean?” Lily rested her arms on the table, leaning in closer to Wick. She hung on every word. “I don’t even really understand what an ‘irin’ is.”
“They’re angels meant to watch over the Earth, to help mankind in the pursuit of good.”
“Each of the irin and the daemon were allowed seven minions to help them on their conquests,” Wick continued. “While the minions were essentially created equal, so each side would be matched perfectly, they had one difference; daemon minions were turned from men, but irin minions were born.”
“So the irin minions are children of angels?” Lily asked.
“Yes, originally,” Wick nodded. “In order for them to be pure of heart, they had to be descended from an irin. Daniel, the leader of the irins, had seven offspring, called virtus. The virtus are here to serve him and help him in his quest to save the Earth.”
“So the virtus are immortal, too?”
“Yes, and no,” Wick said. “They can give up their
“Did he make plans to meet you again?” Wick asked.
“No.” A pain tore through her heart as she realized she might never see him again. The thought had occurred to her as soon as he’d left, but she hadn’t let herself worry about it. It hurt too much.
“You think he rescued you?” Wick asked, bewildered and unbelieving.
“Yes. I suppose he did.”
“That doesn’t make any sense.” Wick shook her head and looked back at his jacket. “I’m not sure it’s even possible. They’re incapable of altruistic actions.”
“They?” Lily stood up, setting her bowl on the floor before walking over to Wick. “What do you know about him? Why don’t you trust him?”
“I don’t know anything about him personally,” Wick clarified. She lowered her head and attempted to go back to writing in her grimoira, or to at least look like that’s what she was doing.
“But you know something .” Lily looked at her plaintively. “Wick, please.” She pulled out the chair and sat down across from her.
“All I know is that his jacket smells like brimstone.” Wick wanted to forget the conversation and wished she’d never brought it up at all, but Lily stared expectantly at her. Sighing, she set her pen inside her book and pushed it aside. “Did your mother ever tell you about irins and daemons?”
“My mother refused to talk to me about anything like that,” Lily shook her head. “The only things I know I overheard from the servants talking.”
“They’re not the most reliable of sources.” Wick pushed a stray strand of hair behind her ears and looked down at the table. “I suppose Iris planned on waiting until you were old enough to explain all of this, but she died before she had the chance. I can’t fault her for that, but she’s left you so unprepared.”
“Unprepared for what?” Lily asked.
“Our world.” Wick smiled thinly at her. “Before the Earth belonged to man, good and evil lived openly, locked in an eternal battle with each other. Their immortality made them weary of the same fights, so they devised a wager to settle it forever. Whoever won would have complete reign over the Earth, and whoever lost would be banished for all of eternity.”
“So they created man to settle a bet?” Lily raised a skeptical eyebrow.
“So the story goes,” Wick nodded. “The most cunning daemon was chosen on the side of evil, and the most valiant irin was chosen on the side of good. They were granted powers and privileges to help them, and while one of them was immortality, it came at a price. They had to make sacrifices to stay alive. For the irin, that meant a chaste life, free of any human pleasures, but for the daemon, that meant something far more deviant.”
“What do you mean?” Lily rested her arms on the table, leaning in closer to Wick. She hung on every word. “I don’t even really understand what an ‘irin’ is.”
“They’re angels meant to watch over the Earth, to help mankind in the pursuit of good.”
“Each of the irin and the daemon were allowed seven minions to help them on their conquests,” Wick continued. “While the minions were essentially created equal, so each side would be matched perfectly, they had one difference; daemon minions were turned from men, but irin minions were born.”
“So the irin minions are children of angels?” Lily asked.
“Yes, originally,” Wick nodded. “In order for them to be pure of heart, they had to be descended from an irin. Daniel, the leader of the irins, had seven offspring, called virtus. The virtus are here to serve him and help him in his quest to save the Earth.”
“So the virtus are immortal, too?”
“Yes, and no,” Wick said. “They can give up their
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