Lilith - TI3 (37 page)

He was right. The older demons still remembered a time when the Twin reigned supreme. Life had been peaceful, too peaceful. The inhabitants were encouraged to read prose, write virtuous parables about those they admired and meditate on ways to better improve their existence. Sex was
not
that way,
nor an option in his world, but it was essential to the demons. Their lives had been... boring.

"You’re probably right, but that’s not why I’m here."

"I didn’t imagine it was, my dear. So, what is it this time?"

"It’s about our child."

"Your child. I disowned her the day she was banished." To Dis, his daughter was a closed subject. "Now, unless you wish to discuss something else, I have guests to entertain."

"They can wait until I’m done... and you can sit down and discuss this with me. The other option is for me to go into your bedroom and tell everyone in there that the party is over... and I really don’t think you want that."

His laughter was like the deep rumble of a waterfall.

"No. I definitely don’t want you mixing with my guests. They are already afraid of you. I’ve only managed to get them back under control after your last visit."

"Good! You need a little disrespect now and then. It keeps your head from exploding. We both know how big it has gotten in the last few years."

"Lily, if I didn’t care so much for you, I’d banish you myself."

"You’d try... but enough of the banter. I want to talk about you about the Child."

Sighing Dis adjusted his robe and leaned back in his chair, crossing his legs. Bare-footed, he reached down to flick a piece of yarn off a polished cloven hoof.

"You still haven't given yourself feet. How come?"

Raising one hoof in the air, he turned it back and forth, admiring its smooth, glossy shape.

"Why should I after all of this time? I find them interesting. Besides, ordinary feet would be soooo boring, don't you think?"

Lilith had to agree. Even she enjoyed the aesthetics of them, not to mention the unusual clicking noise they made when he walked. It was unique to him and a few demons carrying his bloodline.

"Anyway, why bring her up after all of these years," he asked, switching back to her original topic. "She’s where she belongs. You knew the terms of her banishment and agreed. What was done can’t be undone."

"I don’t believe that... especially now."

"And what's so different about now?"

"She and I talk."

"Talk?" he asked, straightening in his chair, showing the more serious side of his nature. "Talk how?"

"I don’t know how."

"When did this start?"

"Not long ago. I don’t know how we do it but we do it."

"How do you know it’s she?"

"How could I not know? She's my child, Dis."

"You bore her, Lily, but that's all. So don't go getting all sentimental and motherly now. She should never have been conceived and you know it."

"And is that really the point, now? She's our daughter... my daughter. Maybe I didn't know what to do with her when she was born, but you did. Instead, you took her from me and gave her away."

"For you own good and hers. It was the right thing to do and I'm not going to sit here and argue with you over something that happened that long ago," growled Dis, angrily. The vessels in his neck pulsed visibly... a sure sign he was beginning to lose his temper.

"You're right," agreed Lilith. "It was a long time ago and it's done... but this is now and we've changed... all of us."

"Not all, my dear. Maybe you are willing to forgive her, but I'm not. She forfeited any consideration when she broke the rules and betrayed us. The Great Battle was painful for everyone but we had reconciled our differences with my brother. Angels and demons were just starting to get along again. Then she came along and broke the truce. Our lives were changed forever."

"She was only a child, Dis."

Rising to his feet, Dis walked onto the balcony overlooking the Underworld. Before him burned the eternal fires of Hell, their flames dancing gracefully between the buildings as far as the eye could see. He enjoyed their flickering colors in much the same way humans found trees and forests pleasing.

"A child, yes... but she was our child... my child. She knew the rules but ignored them. Besides, her actions were not those of a child... and the chaos she caused was inexcusable. Look!" he commanded, motioning toward the scene in front of him. "Once we lived in peace with my brother's people. Maybe he and they didn’t approve of our ways but there was no animosity after the terms of the Truce were agreed upon. We had put our differences aside. As beautiful as this land is, it lacks the color we once had when we were as one."

"I know. Remember, I helped write the Truce."

"Yes. All the more reason why this discussion shouldn't even be taking place. You of all people know what was lost and the price we still pay for her
indiscretion
. Had she not pissed off my brother, we would have harmony here. Humans would be living blissful lives and my Twin and I would be having silly arguments over his latest experiments. She got what she deserved."

"And what about us?"

Dis frowned.

"Us?"

"Yes. Are we so blameless?"

"If you were asking me this about the Great Battle, I would say no. We both knew it was a just war. In this, however, I say yes."

"Well, I disagree. Listen, Dis, I’m not here to defend her actions. What she did was horribly wrong and every living thing suffers because of it. There's no going back, but you and I, we took no interest in her. We abandoned her and expected her to follow our rules unquestioningly. Did you know it was your own demons who poisoned her mind?"

Dis shrugged. The conversation was making him uncomfortable... a feeling he didn’t like.

"I suspected as much."

"And you did nothing to punish them? Why?"

"It would have served no purpose. By the time I found out who else was involved, the Child was in the Netherworld, the truce was broken and we needed every demon we had to balance the odds. It was a matter of survival."

"You banish your own daughter to an eternity of loneliness and yet you do nothing to those who betrayed you?"

"Our daughter," corrected Dis unconsciously. "And like I said, I needed them. We had already lost too many. I owed it to my people to protect those who were left. Now, I really am growing tired of this discussion. What is it you want of me, Lily?"

"I want her freed."

"Impossible. The Netherworld was a one way ticket then and it still is now. Nothing has changed. Once she passed through that door, for all intents and purposes she no longer existed."

"I don’t believe it. If that were so, she couldn’t communicate with me."

"Exactly! So I would say you're imagining those talks. For some reason, you're suddenly feeling guilty and your mind is playing tricks."

"Don’t be an ass! That's ridiculous and you know it. She's as real as you and I."

Knowing it was useless to argue with his ex once her mind was made up, Dis decided on a different approach.

"OK. Let's say you're right. What do you want me to do about it?"

"Tell me how to release her?"

"There is no way!"

"When she was banished, you said she wouldn’t be able to talk to anyone, either... but she talks to me. If you're wrong about that, then there has to be a way to return her."

"Trust me, Lily, if I knew I'd tell you just to get you off my back, but if you figure it out, let me know. In fact, my complete resources are at your disposal. Consider it my contribution to your theory. Feel free to make use of anyone or anything in the Underworld. Now, do you mind if I get back to my guests? I think they've waited long enough for the party to begin."

Lilith recognized Dis had reached the limits of his patience. Although she wasn’t afraid of him, she didn’t want to alienate him either... and besides, she had gotten what she wanted... his permission to free the Child. Without it, even if she found a solution, there would be no place for their daughter to live. With that problem resolved, the only thing left was to discover a way to free her from her prison.

"Thank you, Dis. I appreciate you taking the time to meet with me and accept your offer. Just one more thing, if you don't mind."

Sighing, the red giant rolled his eyes and looked at her distrustfully.

"Quit that!" admonished Lilith. "You can be such a baby! Agra has sent you a soul she wants given special attention."

"Really. She hasn’t actively participated in that practice for over a thousand years, although Sanarixs came close to losing his a while back. What’s so special about this one?"

"He tried to kill one of her whores."

"And for that she’s out of retirement? She must be getting soft," he snorted.

Lilith shrugged.

"Well, the least I can do is accommodate her wishes. It's good to see she still has it in her. Tell her I’ll let the Erinyes have him. They have a special knack for punishing the dead." (Erinyes are the furies or the righteous fury, originally they were in a way similar to angels, especially when it came to vengeance for crimes committed against women).

The demoness smiled. These three sisters had perfected the art of torture. As the demonesses of vengeance, they were even feared by the inhabitants of the Underworld. Only Dis's promise to provide them with an inexhaustible source of victims kept them satisfied enough not to seek subjects from his realm. Whips were their favorite tools, although they had many devices at their disposal. Eternity with them wasn’t necessarily the worst thing, but it came close.

"That will work! She'll be pleased. Now I must be on my way. Thanks again."

"I'll always have time for you, Lily. Are you sure you don’t want to join me? It would be like old times and relieve some stress."

"I doubt it. Demon orgies don’t interest me anymore."

"I’m sorry to hear that... as will be my guests. Forgive my manners for not escorting you out of the Underworld but my guests are waiting. You understand."

Leaning down, he kissed her gently on the cheek, removed his robe and walked away, his hooves clicking lightly on the hard floors. Lilith watched him disappear into the bedroom. She still admired his physique. He was magnificent.

*  *  *

"Yes, he is! Even though he is my Father, I can’t deny his attractiveness,"
observed the Child, breaking into her thoughts.

"There’s nothing wrong in appreciating beauty. Do you see and hear everything I see or think?"

"No, not everything. Most of the time I can see and hear you and them... all of them ... but I can’t touch anyone. It’s like looking at the world through a two-way mirror... so close but untouchable... and, of course, after so much time no one knows I ever existed... well, almost no one. You and Father think of me occasionally even though you disowned me thousands of years ago. Humans can be difficult to hear. Demons are the easiest but I’ve found trying to listen to everyone too confusing. Hearing billions of thoughts is overwhelming, even for me, so I only focus on those I think important. The others serve no purpose unless I sense trouble."

"It must be very lonely!"

"Lonely? I've always been alone. Perhaps I was too harsh in judging you. After all, you had no idea of what pregnancy was or let alone knowing about raising a child. I knew you were miserable. Father could have helped you understand, but he didn't want to deal with a child. It would have interfered with his relationship with you, so he arranged for demons to nurse and care for me. You accepted his decision and explanations without question. That hurt!"

There was nothing Lilith could say about her daughter's revelation. Everything was true.

"Anyway, knowing this and believing that Adam was behind everything bad that had happened to you and then hearing how much he loved Eve, well... I hated him for being happy."