Dark Serpent (27 page)

‘Did you just come in your pants?’ the Demon King said with amusement.

‘Nearly.’ The Western demon held the glass up to the light. ‘Dear God, George, it’s pure DDOMA serpent, the real thing. I haven’t tasted anything like this in close on a thousand years.’ He turned his attention to me. ‘How is this possible? Look at her, she’s tiny. She’s mostly human; far too fragile to be good for anything. There’s hardly any demon at all, and what is there is weak and useless. If I ran into her on the Earthly, I ’d just eat her and count her as a snack.’ He raised the glass again. ‘Why is she like this?’

‘Years of hard work. The Dark Lord has trained her to be a perfect blend of physical power and energy control, and it all fits together to make her greater than the sum of her parts. I knew he wouldn’t be able to resist a double-heritage DDOMA. I couldn’t believe my luck when I found an O’Breen-Donahoe in Hong Kong.’

‘We must have her teach our armies what she’s learnt.’

‘That’s the plan,’ the Demon King said.

He smiled slightly and held his hand out, and the Western demon passed him the glass. He raised it to me. ‘Cheers, Emma. I finally have you in human form and we’ll make sure he won’t find you this time. I have a chance to do some very nice work with you now.’

He sipped the glass and looked confused. He raised it in front of his face. ‘Interesting. I’ve been waiting years for this, and she just tastes like an ordinary human to me.’

The Western demon took the glass back. ‘That’s because she’s from here. You’re the wrong nationality to fully appreciate it.’

‘Shame.’ The Demon King concentrated, and a small skinny Eastern demon wearing nothing but a lab coat came in. The King waved one hand at the syringe in the kidney dish. ‘Is that enough?’

The demon checked the syringe. ‘More than enough.’

‘Full blood work. I want a complete DNA as well. Everything you have on it,’ the King said.

The Western demon took a gulp from the glass. ‘You’re not having this. It’s sublime.’ He looked over the rim at me. ‘How much could we take from her each day without killing her?’

‘Not more than what you have here, and over a long enough time it would kill her anyway,’ the skinny demon said.

‘Damn,’ the Western demon said. He shrugged. ‘Hurry up and do what you want to do with her, George.’

‘It depends on what this blood work shows,’ the Demon King said. ‘If she’s capable, I’ll change her into a Mother again and have her producing young. If not, I’ll mess around with her human genetics and see what comes out.’

‘If you impregnate her yourself, the spawn will probably obey you,’ the Western demon said.

‘That’s what I was thinking. They should be exceptional, quite capable of acting as generals in the army.’

I wanted to throw myself at him and tear him to shreds, but I couldn’t move.

‘She’s shaking,’ the Western demon said. ‘She doesn’t like that idea.’

‘Do you have complete control?’ the Demon King said. ‘She won’t free herself with a giant act of will or anything?’

‘Don’t be ridiculous, there’s no chance of that. She’s too small. She’ll do whatever I tell her.’

‘You should take away her awareness and sentience, just to make sure.’

No!

‘But she’s more fun fighting it! Look at her. Completely unable to do anything.’

‘Trust me, she might win.’

‘Oh, all right.’

The Western demon put the glass down and came to me. I quivered with effort as I tried to move away from him. He put his hand over my face.

‘When I say “now”, you will stop having any independent thoughts and exist only to obey my orders until I tell you otherwise. Now.’

I fell into a bottomless black pit.

Ruby and the stone arranged a meeting at a pub in a small village on the island of Anglesey, which sat between the mainland of Wales and Holy Island. The pub was located across the road from a ruined castle.

Simone stopped when they entered. ‘Wow. Nice.’ The interior had been renovated in cream and gold, with fine linen and flowers everywhere.

Ruby was waiting for them at one of the tables and waved when she saw them.

‘Why isn’t anyone else here?’ Simone asked as the four of them sat.

‘The restaurant’s not open for lunch,’ Ruby said. ‘But they know me — you can get a sandwich or something from the bar.’ She picked up her glass of red wine. ‘I had no idea they were planning an ambush. Snakes are supposed to be smarter than that; looks like being human for too long went to their heads.’

Is she telling the truth?
John asked the Jade Building Block.

I should be offended you even ask that of one of us,
the stone said.
But under the circumstances … Yes, she is.

‘I’ve already updated Ruby on what happened,’ the stone said out loud.

‘The copy of Emma said that it was created somewhere high with a lot of windows,’ John said. ‘Does that sound like one of the big houses around here?’

‘Can’t be the castle across the road,’ Ruby said, gesturing with her head towards the window. ‘That’s just old stone walls.’

‘We should check anyway,’ Simone said.

‘We will,’ John said. ‘What about the other two houses Emma knew of?’

‘One was the residence of the Marquess of Anglesey, but it’s a museum now,’ Ruby said. ‘It has big windows overlooking the strait between Anglesey and mainland Wales, but it’s not very high up.’

‘Sounds like we should still go there,’ Simone said.

‘The other place is a mansion, not very old, on top of a cliff overlooking the water,’ Ruby said. ‘It’s unusual because it’s so black, but it has big windows as well.’

‘Which is closer?’

‘The castle here, then the manor, then the black house.’

‘We’ll check the castle first,’ John said. ‘Then head for the manor.’

‘One other thing,’ Ruby said. ‘Holy Mountain itself is the highest point anywhere around; the demon may be remembering the Heavenly analogue.’

‘After the big houses, we’ll check that too. Eastern Number One said that they were building a demon army in a big house.’ John rose, eager to start. ‘Let’s go.’

The castle was three storeys tall, but had no roof, internal flooring or fixtures; it was just bare stone walls. It had been an impressive fortress in its prime: the walls were high with battlements and the corner towers had slits for archers. An artificial inlet from the sea had been dug right up to the walls to create a moat around the building. It would have been a centre for town trade a thousand years before, and John wished he had been there to see it.

He heightened his senses as they split up and walked around inside the castle’s yards, now just lawn between the walls. He couldn’t feel more than a few centimetres below the surface, even though it was soaked from the British rain, so he pulled his boots and socks off and held them in one hand while he felt the ground beneath him.

‘Ruby,’ the stone said.

‘I know.’

‘What?’ Leo said.

‘Something here isn’t right,’ John said.

‘I can’t sense anything,’ Leo said.

John dropped to one knee in the wet grass and put his hand on the ground. ‘Below thirty centimetres I can’t feel anything. This is the same as Kowloon City Park.’

‘No,’ the stone said.

‘Take True Form and scout the area,’ John said. ‘There will be an entrance here somewhere.’

‘You mean they’re dead? All those stones are dead?’ Ruby’s face was ashen.

‘Some could still be imprisoned. We will find them,’ John said.

Ruby changed to True Form: an uncut ruby the size of a human fist. ‘And avenge them,’ she said, her voice full of menace.

John stood again and felt the ground beneath his bare feet, looking for the entrance. The bare feet triggered his change to his basic form and his hair came out of its tie and quickly tangled. He ignored it as he checked the corner towers. Their partly-hidden interiors would be ideal for a secret entrance and exit.

What he was looking for was in the second tower.

I’ve found it.

They gathered inside the remains of the circular stone tower. Water ran down its walls, making the round black stones shine.

Simone gestured towards the shoes in his hand. ‘Your feet are filthy, Dad. You are absolutely impossible.’

‘I can feel things more effectively barefoot.’ He pointed at the ground. ‘Under here.’

The stone and Ruby changed to human form, shared a look, then both crouched and put their hands on the ground. They stayed there unmoving for a full minute, then Ruby shook her head and stood.

‘We can’t open it, it’s not in tune with our nature,’ she said. ‘It’s something demonic.’

‘Of course it is,’ John said. ‘Move back.’ They stepped back slightly and he waved his hand at them. ‘Further.’

He put one hand over the centre of the entrance and released a tiny amount of yin. A black circle, thirty centimetres across,
appeared, showing the tunnel entrance. It wasn’t big enough, and he hoped they didn’t see him quivering with the effort of controlling the rush of yin through him as he opened it further. This fine work required an immense amount of restraint; the yin wanted to flood through him and take out most of the stars in that part of the galaxy. It was made doubly difficult by the fact that the coating on the wall wanted to grow back and cover the opening, and he had to maintain a flow of yin just to keep it open.

The circle expanded to reveal a stairway leading down, its walls and steps made of the same wet black stone. John held his arm out to stop anyone from rushing in, and climbed down the first few stairs. He sent his awareness down, sensing what he could, and came up against a blockage at the bottom. There was a door there, covered in the stone coating.

‘How many have died?’ the stone said quietly.

‘I can’t feel past the door,’ John said.

He sat on the damp stairs and put his socks and boots back on, not enjoying the enclosed feeling around his feet. He made an attempt to tidy his tangled hair, roughly braiding it to keep it out of the way.

‘Simone and Leo, remain up here. Ruby and Building Block, in True Form with me.’

He moved down the stairs with the two stones in True Form floating at his shoulders. He pressed his ear against the door. His heightened senses might not be able to see anything on the other side, but there was still basic physics. There was no sound, so he pushed against it. It didn’t open, and had no handle. He put his palm against it and pulled it towards him. It swung open and he stopped it at a five centimetre crack.

The Building Block floated through the gap.
Clear
, it said.

John pulled the door all the way open to reveal a corridor, its walls and ceiling lined with the same black stones as the castle above. The floor was packed earth. The tunnel smelled of damp mud and mould and the death of the stones that had been made into paint and used to coat the walls.

It was only forty centimetres wide and one and a half metres high; he had to stoop and turn slightly sideways to fit. He glanced at the stone; this couldn’t be good for its claustrophobia.

Stay there,
he said to Leo and Simone, still on the surface, then released the yin and let the hole seal itself.

The two stones rested on his shoulders so they could communicate.

It’s getting narrower
, the Building Block said.

It isn’t, that’s just you,
John said.
Try to keep it under control.

The tunnel appeared to follow the contours of the castle, suggesting it was part of the structure. It opened on the right into one of the circular corner towers, two metres across. The room was made even smaller by the shelves lining the walls. Ruby changed to human form and picked up one of the many shoe boxes on the shelves.

‘Dad?’ she hissed, picking up a stone from one of the boxes and cradling it in both hands. ‘Mummy?’ She fell to her knees, bent protectively over the stone. ‘Please talk to me.’

‘I’m sure I heard something,’ a voice said down the corridor.

They’re coming. We need to get out,
the Building Block said. ‘Go, Ruby, take your parent. Lord Xuan, take her out. I’ll stay here and monitor.’

Ruby didn’t respond; she seemed to be stricken with grief.

I’ll just destroy them,
John said.

They’ll call for help and you’ll have all of them down on you. They’ll probably kill you. Simone needs you up there.

You won’t be able to communicate!
John said.

‘In the stone room?’ another voice said, and John made them invisible.

A pair of Western demons filled the doorway.

‘Nothing here,’ one of them said.

‘Something’s not right,’ the other said. ‘Listen.’

Ruby was softly sobbing, unaware of her surroundings.

‘I’ll be damned, listen to that,’ one of the demons said. ‘Haunted. How cool is that?’

Just go,
the stone said.
I’ll find out where they’re holding Emma and make my way back to you.
The stone took the form of Ruby’s parent and floated to lie in the shoe box.

John hesitated.

‘I don’t think that’s a ghost,’ one of the demons said, and both drew their weapons. ‘Get backup.’

John grabbed Ruby and teleported them both out of the room and into the corridor behind the demons. As the demons entered the room to investigate, he moved as silently as he could, taking her back up the stairs. He opened the ground again to see Simone and Leo waiting. He pushed Ruby at them. ‘Take her back to the pub and wait for me there.’

He dashed back down the stairs and made himself invisible, then sent his awareness down the corridor. The demons were still checking the stone room.

He pushed his awareness as far as he could, and sagged with disappointment. This was a stone laboratory occupying the old tunnels beneath the castle. There were only five rooms branching off the corridor, and all of them were full of stored stones. A circular area at the end held a nasty-looking variety of saws and crushers. The walls were covered in stone stuff, but there were no other doors. Emma wasn’t there.

He eased down the corridor, wincing as he brushed against the stones. He was so low on stamina that just the invisibility was as much as he could handle; he couldn’t manage the added effort of making himself soundless. The demons walked out of the room and headed down the hall away from him.

I’m back. Go out. I’ll check around,
he said.

The stone didn’t reply.

Stone?
He went to the box and touched the stone lying in it.
Stone?

Emma’s not here,
the stone said.

I know. Let’s go.

Let me stay here to do some reconnaissance,
the stone said.
I’ll learn as much as I can and meet up with you.

John hesitated.
What if they catch you?

Finding Emma is more important than losing an old tired stone, Turtle. Come back after you’ve checked the other two houses and I’ll meet up with you.

You’d better,
John said.
I will return for you.

He went back up the stairs and walked across the road to the pub. He stopped at the door and raised his face into the misty rain, absorbing the energy of the natural water. So far from his own Centre, it didn’t do much. He dried himself and went inside.

Leo and Simone were sitting at a table with Ruby, who was still clutching her parent in both hands.

‘I have to find help,’ she said when she saw him. ‘We have to go in and stop them.’

‘Where’s the Jade Building Block?’ Simone said.

‘It stayed behind to scout the location,’ John said.

‘You should not have let it do that!’ Simone said. ‘It’ll get itself killed, like Ruby’s parent.’

‘Don’t say that, my parent isn’t dead,’ Ruby said. ‘I just need to find the other stones and they can help me.’

‘Have you ever seen anything like this before?’ John said, sitting across from her.

‘Never.’ She took a drink from a glass of red wine. ‘You should not have left the Jade Building Block in there. The same thing will happen to him.’

‘He’s old and crafty,’ John said. ‘I have faith in him. Can you show us where the next house is?’

‘I’ll show you where they both are, then I’m finding help to destroy everything down there and free those stones,’ Ruby said. ‘You can go to the houses yourselves.’

John looked from Leo to Simone and opened his mouth.

‘Don’t even think about it. We’re coming with you,’ Simone said.

John closed his mouth. Waste of time arguing with them.

He stood up. ‘Let’s go then.’

The manor was only half an hour from the castle, on its own large estate between Anglesey and the Welsh mainland. It was rectangular, two hundred metres long, three storeys high, and made of brick with large double-storey windows overlooking the strait.

‘This could be it,’ Simone said as they landed in the grounds.

John extended his senses around and down. The earth below him wasn’t blocked; there were no tunnels beneath this building.

They entered a three-metre-wide, double-storey hall with huge Renaissance paintings that filled the entire height of the room. From there they went into the ballroom, which was largely empty
except for the portraits along the walls. Only about ten other people were present in the museum, and when they were alone in the ballroom John quickly dropped to one knee to concentrate on the floor. The building didn’t have a basement and he could sense the sodden earth for a long way down. He stood up, went to a wall and leaned on it to send his awareness through the building.

On the other side of the manor was a dining room and parlour, each ten by five metres with a six-metre-high ceiling. A magnificent mural covered an entire wall of the dining room and John wished he had time to admire it. These rooms had double-storey windows overlooking the strait, but there was no trace of demonic presence anywhere and no trace of Emma.