Page 105 of Unbinding the Demon
A few small, loose stones rolled over the edge, plummeting to the water below, as my foot unintentionally kicked them off. “Really? Why wouldn’t she just leave him alone?”
He pulled me closer to his side, since I was a little too close to the edge for his comfort. “Because he was to be wed to a noble Tenverian woman on the day of coronation, but he fled that same day. To say that she was royally pissed off would be an understatement. She wants him to pay for the humiliation he caused.” He held up his palm, level with his bicep. “They usually just torture him in the dungeons whenever they catch him. But sometimes it’s far worse. On occasion, they’ll strap him down to a bed, fully naked, to be seduced by a bunch of horny Tenverian noblewomen.”
My jaw dropped slight disgust, and I tilted my head. “Well, I mean, that last part doesn’t sound all that bad.”
“Oh, but it is. He doesn’t consent to it at all. It’s practically rape.”
My expression turned to one of horror and outrage. “What the fuck? Why would they do something like that?”
“It’s because those two black stripes over his left eye are royal birthmarks, and the Tenverians will only accept someone who has the mark as their king. The queen cannibalized the last king right after Valarendrik’s birth.” Valarendrik tilted his head in curiosity when he heard his name. “Then she sacrificed his brother, so he’s the only one left who can pass on the mark. She needs him to produce an heir so she can finally kill him. I don’t know how many times I’ve had to break into that blasted castle, then slaughter my way through a sea of libidinous undead bimbos while yelling at him to keep his resolve and maintain his virtue.”
Wait... Maintain his virtue? Dafuq?
My eyes widened and shifted around awkwardly. “So, wait a minute. Is he a virgin?” I glanced back at Valarendrik, who noticed the weird way I was looking at him.
Azathoth grinned with mischief. Then, without breaking his gait, he leaned in as if he were about to spill the tea. “Indeed, he is.” His eyebrows bounced twice. “He’s quite possibly the only four thousand and something year-old virgin in existence.” He pointed at Valarendrik, unabashed and blatant.
Valarendrik’s ruby eyes narrowed at Azathoth, then he said something with unmistakable suspicion. Azathoth put his hand up as if he’d been busted as he replied to Valarendrik. A slightly embarrassed look that said,“Ah, come on, man, really?”flashed across Valarendrik’s face. Then he laughed with an effervescent gleam in his eyes and said something that sounded sarcastic.
Please don’t tell me he just told the poor guy that we were talking about his virginity.
“He just called me the abyssal equivalent of an asshole for talking about his virginity.... Then he mentioned that not only does he abstain to not pass on the royal mark but also because Tenverian women are so abhorrent that not even I’m willing to fuck them. Which is completely true, and that’s saying something considering I’m half incubus.” He and Valarendrik were now both laughing as we traversed through the massive, dark stone archway and into the menacing pantheon.
I started laughing too. But then that laughter faded, as I began to grow suspicious of what he meant by that. While we entered the large main room, I pondered all the things I’d learned so far about incubi. Like, why would it be problematic if they couldn’t control their fertility? Or what use could they possibly have for entering dreams?
The impressive architecture quickly diverted my attention from my contemplative thoughts. The stone room was desolate except for a single black plinth in the center. The dark, crumbling walls reminded me somewhat of the interior of old Gothic cathedrals. They stretched up elegantly to a large hole at the top of the central minaret, similar to the Pantheon in Rome. Huge black spiders the size of a bobcat scurried about the many pale cobwebs that were sloppily strung up along the dismal ceiling. Each one softly hissed at our unexpected intrusion.
Azathoth’s footsteps echoed upon the weathered stone floor as he stalked over to the empty plinth. His deep voice carried as he began reading the demonic inscriptions engraved into its sides. I swiftly shuffled along behind him like a frightened duckling.
I furrowed my brows, inspecting the strange pentacle-shaped hole in the middle. The engravings around it were bizarre, yet slightly familiar. “What language is this? It looks somewhat familiar.” I tilted my head as I looked over at him.
“It’s Enochian, the demonic language. Very ancient demons built this to keep the axe out of the wrong hands.” He blew some dust off the side. “That was long before The Abyss was deemed too unsafe for demonkind, though.”
My gaze shifted over to Valarendrik, glimpsing him slashing an aggressive spider into mere ribbons within a matter of seconds. “Why would the demon gods hide the Teloch Axe in The Abyss, anyway?” I asked, pretending that I didn’t just see that horrifying sight. “Did demons used to travel here often?”
“It’s possible, but I don’t actually know the history. My guess is it’s because no sane demon would ever willingly come to this place and find it.” He noticed my intrigue and continued. “There’s no fire here, nothing worth fucking, and dark abyssal essence can corrupt or kill us. I was trapped in this awful world for five thousand years, and no one even thought to search for me here; that’s how unlikely it is for a demon to enter The Abyss.”
“But you came here willingly.” I ran my finger over the intricate stone inscription, wondering why demons would have bothered to build such an elaborate place just to hide a stupid axe.
He peeked up at me with a maniacal grin. “I’m not a sane demon, love.” He began to focus and mumbled along as he read the engravings. “Once the blood moon falls decrescent, insert the dark crystal into the keyhole to unlock the chasm of death... What the fuck?”A vicious growl rolled in the back of his throat, then he angrily said something to Valarendrik. Valarendrik shrugged and replied, seeming unbothered while standing among a harrowing pile of shredded spiders.
My eyes shifted slowly as I examined my surroundings. “What’s wrong?”
Azathoth sighed and ran a hand through his hair in frustration. “It says to open the chasm which leads to the vovin, we have to wait until the blood moon is in its decrescent phase; then insert some mysterious dark crystal into the plinth. And Valarendrik just informed me that the next blood moon isn’t for another fifteen years!” He threw his hands up in aggravation.
“So, we need a dark crystal, you say? You wouldn’t happen to know any Skeksis, would you?” I joked, while tapping my chin.
“What the fuck is a Skeksis?” He raised a curious brow, then shook his head and waved his hand dismissively. “Never mind, I don’t have the time or the patience to hunt down some surreptitious crystal, which probably only Satan himself knows the whereabouts of, then wait around for fifteen fucking years to complete some byzantine rigmarole created by the ancient demonic gods! ...Fuck this!”
I jumped back with a gasp as he abruptly kicked over the plinth like an enraged maniac, causing a loud crash to resonate throughout the room. It broke in two as it smashed to the ground, with dust and little pieces of stone flying out around it.
I clutched my head in a panic.“What the fuck are you doing!?”
His arm waved wildly while he pointed toward the far wall with a firm gesture. “Get back against that wall and stay there!” he demanded with a downright crazed gleam in his eyes. He then rushed to say something to Valarendrik.
Valarendrik nodded while replying and crossed the distance to me in a hurry. He very gently placed his hand on my upper back, then led me against the wall. Azathoth began flapping his wings, causing a slight breeze to fan all around the room as he flew upward. I watched in bewilderment as he shot up and vanished through the massive ceiling hole.
My head craned up like an alarmed turkey to get a better look. “Where the fuck is he going?” I asked quietly, even though I knew Valarendrik couldn’t understand me.
