Page 58 of Kiss of Magic

“If they leave now, the seal will fully open.”

“It’s too late. It’s already opening.”

“But only partially. It isn’t open all the way.”

All eyes were rivetted on the thing slowly emerging from the crack in the centre of the floor. It was alien and monstrous. They’d never seen anything like it – there hadn’tbeenanything like it for five thousand years.

The demon was huge, perhaps twice as tall as a jinn. It’s outer skeleton was covered in a dark carapace, putting Kam in mind of a scorpion. Its spine was a segmented ridge protruding from its back. Raw strands of muscle held together the joints of its limbs and bony plates protected the organs in its torso.

The way it moved was strange. Odd little jerks that didn’t seem to flow naturally. It reminded Kam of the pictures of stick-men he used to draw as a child, putting a slightly different pose on each page and making the figure ‘run’ by flicking through them rapidly.

And its face… Its face was the stuff of nightmares. The fleshless ovoid skull was dotted with insectile eyes giving it 360 degree vision. There was no way of knowing what it was looking at but Kam had the strongest feeling it was staring right at him.

The thing had no ears as such but on either side of its head there were long filaments that vibrated at the merest whisper. They rippled organically as the creature struggled to free itself.

He fought his growing panic. The demonicus spirit was squeezing out of a crack less than an inch across. It shouldn’t have been possible – anyone could plainly see the creature was far, far wider than the gap. But it was happening before his eyes in a mind-bending denial of the laws of physics.

“Send the messenger sprites,” he ordered.

The unthinkable was finally happening. Everyone had to be warned. If there was any saving grace it was this: the crack was only wide enough to let them out one at a time.

“At least it’s alone,” he muttered, trying to reassure himself as much as anyone else. The demon’s mouth opened, revealing a maw full of serrated teeth. A long tongue flickered towards him.

Not. For. Long.

Kam froze. Had it just…?

“Did that thing speak?”

Mutely, Cassia nodded. Kam swallowed, dread welling in his chest. It was sentient, and it understood what was happening.

“Get the soldiers in here.”

A troop of guards came in, each bearing a wide-bore silver tube with a rudimentary trigger. They were ultra-high thermal guns constructed in Palissandra – the first contingent of weapons provided by Count Lemar.

Careful not to jostle the chanting witches, the soldiers took up positions between them and aimed at the demon.

They fired.

Flames belched in a searing wave, charring the floor and partially melting the marble flagstones. Kam felt the blow-back scorch his skin and heard the witches falter as they were blasted with residual heat.

The soldiers sprayed their fire until the fuel was spent. But when the orange and blue eruption finally ceased, the demon was still there. It snickered.

Kam didn’t know what to do. If he didn’t clear the circle of witches from the seal, they would be slaughtered as soon as the demon got free. But if hedidclear them, the rest of the seal would open and a flood of demonic creatures would rise from beneath their feet.

He could scarcely believe the bravery of the wiccans as they continued to hold the line. He had to do something.

He took Cassia’s arm and drew her outside the Seal Room.

“We don’t have much time,” he said. “I have to try and draw it away so the witches can keep the seal from opening any further.”

“It knows they’re a threat, your Majesty. It’ll go straight for them.”

“Not if I can get it to fixate on me. Any ideas?”

Cassia thought.

“If the ancient stories are true, the things demons hated more than anything were the angels.”

---