Darkness of the Soul (38 page)

Then
the
betrayer
had
come,
the
noruk-to
,
and
had
dashed
all
of
the
Beast’s
hopes
and
plans.
He
had
reforged
the
binding,
had
taken
the
gifts
given
to
him
and
turned
them
against
the
giver.
He
had
thought
it
over
then.

But
the
Beast
was
wily,
and
the
Wardens
were
not
the
only
ones
susceptible
to
the
siren
song
of
its
gifts;
it
chose
another,
using
him
to
destroy
the
betrayer
and
reclaim
the
talu`shar
for
those
more
suited
to
the
Beast’s
purposes.
A
century
ago,
it
had
slowly
begun
to
rebuild
its
power
base,
bringing
others
into
the
fold
and
destroying
each
Warden
when
it
seemed
he
might
be
growing
powerful
enough
to
attempt
the
same
feat
the
betrayer
had
achieved.
As
the
decades
crept
by,
it
felt
the
chains
loosening
again
and
knew
its
time
might
at
last
be
coming.
It
called
to
one
who
would
take
it
across
the
seas,
to
the
place
where
it
could
be
reborn,
sniffing
through
the
threads
of
destiny
with
gifts
most
were
unaware
it
possessed,
until
it
felt
a
place
that
called
to
it.

That
Warden
had
done
well
for
himself,
taking
the
Beast
to
America
and
feeding
it
well.
Still,
it
had
not
been
enough,
and
the
Beast
nearly
despaired.
Driven
almost
to
madness
by
the
centuries
of
imprisonment,
it
raged
against
its
prison
and
battered
itself
all
but
senseless,
before
sensing
a
single
crack
in
the
walls
of
the
universe,
a
single
spot
that
it
might
use
to
its
advantage.

The
Beast
had
reached
out,
sending
a
small
fraction
of
itself
toward
that
crack
and
for
a
time
had
felt
the
freedom.
It
had
been
made
real,
manifest
once
again
in
the
world
of
the
living.
The
one
who
had
the
power
to
call
it
was
fearful
and
sought
to
beat
the
Beast
back,
but
he
was
weak
and
the
portal
was
already
opened.
The
Beast
allowed
the
whelp
to
think
he
had
won
and
then
had
taken
a
trophy
for
itself.

It
had
tasted
the
despair
in
the
soul
of
Damien
Woods,
so
akin
to
the
ancient
betrayer,
and
feasted
upon
it.
It
took
a
measure
of
that
despair
into
itself
and
returned
it
a
thousand
times
over,
bloating
the
boy
with
powers
beyond
his
control
or
comprehension,
deluding
him
into
thinking
he
served
some
force
to
counter
the
one
that
had
claimed
his
lover’s
life.

The
Beast
had
learned
a
great
deal
about
the
value
of
mythology
while
corrupting
its
Wardens;
twisting
the
youth’s
mind
had
been
simplicity
itself.
Woods
had
wanted
something
to
believe
in,
and
the
Beast
had
been
more
than
capable
of
giving
it
to
him.
It
had
so
thoroughly
marked
him
that
he
didn’t
even
realize
he
served
the
very
thing
he
hated
so
much.

With
the
two
of
them,
it
had
been
even
easier
to
locate
the
one
it
needed.
The
betrayer
had
remade
the
binding;
only
the
blood
of
the
betrayer
could
break
it.
With
Woods
and
Karim
both
searching,
it
had
been
simple
enough
to
put
them
in
place
and
find
the
noruk-to’s
blood.

Then
things
had
started
to
go
wrong.
The
Beast
had
found
the
child,
and
Karim
had
broken
him,
but
unlike
the
father,
no
spark
of
power
remained
in
him.
The
blood
was
right,
but
none
of
the
spirit
was
there.
The
years
wasted
searching,
the
anniversary
passed
with
nothing
to
show
for
it,
and
the
Beast
was
chained
for
another
year
of
madness
and
misery.

All
had
not
been
lost
yet,
however;
while
the
Beast
would
have
preferred
the
child—both
for
the
blow
it
would
give
to
the
father
and
to
satisfy
Karim’s
preferences—Drakanis
himself
still
possessed
a
shred
of
the
old
talents,
the
spark
of
his
ancestors,
and
would
do
admirably.
Only
a
year
to
wait
 
.
 
.
 
.
 
and
then
freedom.

Now,
as
its
hour
drew ’round
once
more,
the
Beast
smiled
to
itself
and
waited.

Chapter
36
 

11:30 am, December 24, 1999

Reno was silent, a rare thing for a city that slept only marginally more than Las Vegas; no people walked the streets, and businesses were hearing their doors open so little that many proprietors were already considering hanging their closed signs and heading home. Since midnight, the citizens had been huddling together in their homes feeling the pulses of headaches or cramps in their bowels, their brains singing with pure fury and raw terror, though none could have explained why. It just felt safer to stay inside, away from strangers.