Chapter 5 #3
Don’t get me wrong, there’s nothing else I could do with my life. Being a hunter is my calling, my vocation. I’ve tried other stuff, and none of it fulfils me. But that doesn’t mean it’s easy.
“Okay,” Kieran says, and I smile. It’s cute the way he says that when he’s trying to get his thoughts together. “So there’s another ghost here. I can handle that. It’s fine.”
“Don’t worry, he won’t be staying,” I assure him.
“He’s got other people to check on. But getting back to the gateway…
” That gets all their attention. “The otherworld is a dimension that runs parallel to ours, like I said before. A gateway is a tear in the fabric between us and the otherworld. There must be an open gateway for demons to get to Earth, but you don’t necessarily need to open a gateway to summon one. ”
“That’s clear as mud,” Daniel says. “And I work with mud a lot, so I’m an expert.”
“I’m sure someone thinks you’re funny, but it’s not me.
I’m not done yet. Remember I mentioned the naturally occurring gateways that can’t be closed?
Originally, demons would come through those.
Once they were here on Earth, they had free rein to run rampant.
Around the time humans starting building civilizations, it started to get out of control.
Before that, a demon would pop through a gateway, take out whatever family or band of nomads was nearest, and head on home.
When humans started building towns and collecting in bigger groups, the demons realized there was more to Earth than just the occasional snack, and they began sticking around and wiping out whole settlements.
That’s when the earliest hunters came to be, around three or four thousand years ago.
” I pause. “There’s a whole lot of history and tangents, but I’m going to skip a lot of it.
Those early hunters eventually realized their jobs would be much easier if they could trap the demons.
That’s how the first circle was created.
It was purely a containment circle, designed to hold the demons in place while they were banished. ”
“But Josh didn’t use anything like that,” Ewan says. “Is that because he’s so skilled he doesn’t need to?”
Aww. Someone hand me a barf bag. “Josh has a lot of talent,” I say diplomatically.
I’ve pissed these people off enough already.
Also, have you seen the arms on Ewan? He could snap me like a twig and never even notice.
“But soul-eaters don’t usually warrant a circle.
They’re nasty but not difficult to get rid of, and comparatively, they’re not that dangerous. ”
Ewan looks crushed. Josh pats his arm comfortingly.
“After that—”
“Sorry, wait, can I just…” Daniel trails off. “Are you saying the demon we dealt with is like a demon-lite? There are other demons that are more dangerous?” He’s massaging one of his hands with the other, and my eye is drawn to the heavy scarring on both of them.
“Every demon is dangerous,” I say firmly.
“But soul-eaters can’t physically rip you apart with a thought.
They need to push you off a cliff or throw a rock at your head to kill you.
And they’re dumb. So yeah, there are other demons that are more dangerous.
” A lot more dangerous. Memories of my one encounter with a higher demon try to rise, but I firmly push them down. I’d like to be able to sleep tonight.
Daniel takes a deep breath through his nose, his chest rising. “Tell us what we can do.”
“Maybe we should close,” Kieran suggests, frowning. “No guests, no staff. Not until we can get rid of this gateway.”
“Haven’t you told them anything?” Uncle Norval booms, and everyone jumps. “Wheee! This is fun. If I’d known about this place, I’d have come much sooner.” He reaches out and pokes me in the arm, and I feel it. Damn, Joe told him about the energy allowing ghosts to take physical form.
“Uncle Norval,” I start, but he’s still talking.
“Look at you sorry lot,” he’s telling our hosts. “Caught with your Underoos around your knees, weren’t you?”
I really regret telling him about Underoos when I was a kid.
“Not a real warrior among you,” he declares.
“You!” He jabs a finger at Ewan. “You’ve got the muscle, but a demon would make a nice meal of you.
And you!” It’s Josh’s turn. “You’ve got some talent, but by your age my descendants are all fully trained, not faffing about without even a shield.
” He shakes his head. “Youth these days.” His gaze sweeps over Skye and Daniel.
“Nice hair,” he says approvingly. “Of course, it’s like a beacon.
‘Here I am,’ it screams. ‘Conduit, over here, ready for occupation!’” Skye puts a hand on his hair, eyes wide, and I shake my head and make an apologetic face.
It’s a bad thing when I have to be the diplomatic one.
Uncle Norval’s gaze lands on Kieran. “A ginger,” he announces. “Connor loves the gingers. Especially with lots of freckles. And you’ve got a nice, orderly mind too.” He glances over his shoulder at me. “This one might be worth a try.”
Jesus fucking Christ.