Chapter 10 Gabe
Gabe
Istrode into the courtyard and a keening howl met my ears an instant before a massive ball of white fur slammed into me, nearly dropping me to the ground.
“Fucking hell, Kevin!”
I scratched at that spot behind his ears that he liked so much as his tongue and tail flapped in wild tandem.
I made a mental note to introduce him to the staff and get everyone comfortable so he didn’t have to sleep in the kennels another night.
He liked the outdoors but was probably lonely without his brethren.
I’d left the rest of my hell-hounds back in the human realm as they made traveling more cumbersome and the plan was to shed the crown and head back there the second this mess was over anyway. ..back to my casino, back to my life.
Unless I was dead, of course, along with everyone else in the world.
The last few days had been a whirlwind, with kingly duties and commitments filling every hour of my schedule. And, if that hadn’t been bad enough, yesterday’s meeting with the Briar Queen had thrown yet another wrench in the works.
Ridiculous, as she was just one, tiny female human.
I couldn’t deny it, though. There was something special about her.
Those strange powers of perception, like she was always one step ahead.
The boldness she’d shown with me even though she had to know I could have crushed her.
If she were anyone else, it would’ve come off as foolhardy. But the Briar Queen was nobody’s fool.
So what was it, then?
I gritted my teeth, cursing myself for wasting more time thinking about her–surely last night’s dreams had been more than enough. The little I’d seen of her face had been nothing special…so what made her so damned alluring?
I huffed out a groan, refocusing. I’d carved out one hour to work my muscles, clear my mind, and do something that felt normal. No annoying minders breathing down my neck about my next obligation for a fucking change. I was not going to waste it worrying about the local madame.
Kevin pulled away from me, his muscles going tense as a low growl tore from his throat.
“Stay,” I commanded, grabbing the hilt of my sword as the door creaked open behind me.
I closed the distance in a single bound, bringing my sword down in an arc, but it struck steel rather than flesh as Luc parried, spinning into a slash of his own.
I leapt away, grinning. “Ah, good. You’ve gotten better than you were when we were lads.”
“Years of training will do that.” Luc laughed, then began to circle me, his sword’s tip inches from the ground. “I’m happy to see that the rumors about you lazing around at the casino all this time were false. When you asked me to spar, I must admit I was a bit worried I’d have to hold back…”
I shot forward in time with the last syllable, whipping my sword toward his legs. He leapt over it at the last second, lunging forward with a thrust of his own. We exchanged a dozen attacks in a matter of seconds, with each slash flowing into the next.
Luc was as aggressive a fighter as I remembered, turning every blocked strike into an attack of his own.
I matched him blow for blow, relishing in the difference in strength between us as I bashed his sword every which way, pressing him back.
But hells, he was fast. Before I could fully back him into a corner, he burst into a flurry of movement, feinting twice before diving past me, heading to the courtyard’s center.
I unfurled my wings, throwing myself at him and flapping them a single time for a burst of speed.
A glimmer of shock filled his expression as he spun to see me land only a heartbeat after he had, my sword already arcing toward him.
He whipped his arm up to parry a half second too slow, and I pulled back on my slash just before it struck.
Thunk.
“Seven hells,” he cursed, sheathing his sword to rub at his side. The weapons we’d used were blunted for sparring, but it still hurt like a son of a bitch to take a clean hit from one. “How’d you get so damned strong? Like a fucking demon ox.”
I jabbed a finger toward Kevin, who’d been watching motionlessly from the side of the room. “Hell-hounds are a handful, especially when you’re trying to train them.”
Luc looked over, ignoring Kevin’s low growl as he locked eyes with him. “Never seen one that color.”
“He’s one of one.”
Luc’s mouth quirked. “Good thing, because he is cross-eyed as fuck.”
I let out a grunt. “I can’t have you insulting my hound. Again?” I tightened my fingers around the hilt of my sword.
He nodded. “It won’t be so easy this time.”
I grinned, ready to make a move, but another low growl from Kevin brought me to a stop. “Easy. We’re just–”
The door shot open, and a red-faced Rufus glided through in a tangle of robes, sucking in a gasping breath.
“I’ve been looking all over for you. What are y—,” he broke off, face twisting into a scowl as he looked at my sword, and then at Luc. He paused for a moment, and seemed to settle himself before adding, “There are urgent matters for you to attend to, Your Majesty.”
My fingers dug into my palm, and I exhaled sharply. “What is it that is so urgent this time, Rufus? Does someone want me to preside over a disagreement about a tree limb extending onto their property? Or maybe one of the nobles wants to weigh in on this year’s tax assessment?”
“Not exactly, erm, no…” The wizard shot a nervous gaze at Luc but shrugged. “Lord Burnock is here to see you. He says he has some kind of proposition for you, but he wouldn’t say more.”
Luc whistled. “Must be important if ol’ Burnock came all the way here to talk to you. Can’t remember the last time we had the pleasure.” Something about the way he said that last part told me that the last visit had been anything but pleasurable.
“Some Lord from the outer lands?” The name did ring a bell, but I couldn’t quite place it.
“One of the highest-ranking nobles from beyond The Spire, and a strong supporter of our previous king,” Rufus confirmed.
I sheathed the sword, squeezing the bridge of my nose with my free hand. “Understood. Let’s go.”
Rufus and I strode into the upper throne room a few minutes later. The walls were covered with murals of fire and brimstone, but the centerpiece, fixed directly behind the jet-black throne, was even more disconcerting.
The corpse of Aliyah Demonsbane, first Queen of the Angels, was nailed upside down to the wall, her glowing, milky crown still fixed to her head.
“Remind me to have that taken down,” I muttered. A little demonic pride was fine by me, but this was ghoulish, regardless of how many Demons she had slain. Especially at a time when true unity was about to mean everything...
To my surprise, Rufus nodded his head in agreement. “I’ve always found it rather obnoxious. If you want to have a seat on the throne, I can bring Lord Burnock in to see you.”
I considered it for a moment, then shook my head. “We’ll go to him. I plan on keeping this as short as possible.”
Thirty seconds later, I was already regretting the decision.
Lord Burnock was not a handsome man. His beady eyes were misshapen and set deep into a leathery face, and his crooked nose made him look like a disfigured bat, but worse was the thick stench of bad breath.
It assaulted my nostrils the moment I stepped into the small waiting room, but I ignored it, striding through the stink.
Rufus cleared his throat. “His Majesty, and the ruler of all Demonkind has come to meet you, Lord Burnock. Bow before your king.”
He turned away from the pretty young demon female he’d been speaking with, dipping his head a bare fraction of an inch.
Irritation spiked through me, but I forced a tight smile. Cordial as possible, help him get his mind right, and send him right back out the door again. Hopefully before the smell really seeped into the place.
I stepped forward, patting him lightly on the shoulder. “Welcome to Seventhell, Lord Burnock. To what do we owe the pleasure?”
“I bring news, and a request, my lord. I–”
“Your majesty,” Rufus corrected sharply.
The older man managed the thinnest of smiles. “Your Majesty, yes. My apologies. It’ll take some getting used to, after so many years in Malach’s service…But, as I was saying, I was hoping that I could speak with you somewhere more…private.” He tipped his head toward the single guard in the room.
Torrin was young, and eager, and loyal. He was the guard I’d found through the Prism, and on seeing his true loyalty, had drawn him in immediately to my inner circle.
“Torrin, you’re dismissed for now. Wait outside for me.”
The young guard bowed low, mumbling a quiet ‘yes Your Majesty’ and then exited the room, leaving Burnock glancing from me to Rufus. “And what of your advisor?”
Rufus’ lip twitched, but he remained silent.
“He stays,” I said, surprising even myself. The mage was annoying, and while I didn’t fully trust him, the very fact that Burnock wanted him gone told me it was better to have him stay. “Now tell me, Lord Burnock. What is this news you bring from the outer lands? I am eager to hear it.”
Liar, liar.
“As I’m sure you’ve heard, the demons east of the Shadowcrest mountains have been rather…worked up about the incident in Wolf Territory.”
Rufus scoffed, but I cut him short with a glance before he could interject.
I went to the table, letting the silence do the heavy lifting, feeling the room tighten with tension as I poured myself a drink.
“Worked up? Last I heard, they were halfway to a full-on rebellion. If they’re still causing trouble, perhaps I could send General Algrin out to take care of them.
” I tipped the Oasis wine to my mouth, the crisp, clean liquid washing over my tongue, and ridiculously enough, made me think of the Briar Queen.
Damn her for lingering in my thoughts even now, when I needed focus elsewhere.