Chapter 23
The trip back too and through the Ancient's gate, was fairly quick and straight forward. I changed into dragon form, and flew back towards the demon's lines. I found Shaitan at one section of the line, and landed not far from him.
"Paul! We thought you lost!" Shaitan exclaimed, as I transformed back into my normal human self.
I quickly filled him in on what happened. He thought that it was a trick, but contacted his father. Morningstar appeared instantly. I repeated the story of my capture, what was said, and my subsequent release.
While we had been talking, the enemy had been steadily retreating. I still wondered where they had gotten these primitive people from. I had seen no evidence of them in the Ancient's world. Not even a camp!
I informed Morningstar I had to get back to my world, and tell the Gods what had happened. For a good long minute, I thought he was going to refuse. Then he nodded, and told his son to see to it. With that, Morningstar was gone.
"Well, I have come to look forward to seeing you, since you arrived here. I think I will actually miss you," Shaitan told me.
I was astonished to say the least! One of the most evil characters in modern literature would miss me? Somehow I doubted that. I had things to think over, and I had a lot to tell Vostich, Mirwanna, Fithian, and the Gods. It would be an interesting meeting to say the least.
With Shaitan doing the work, we made it back to the gate a lot more quickly than my trip in had taken. True to his word, there were five casks of the wine I had liked, at the gate.
"Will you take my hand, Paul?" Shaitan asked me, holding out his hand for a handshake.
With reservations, I took it and shook hands with the devil! I could not believe I was doing this! I walked through the gate, with five demons carrying my wine casks behind me. As soon as I came through, I felt a PRESENCE.
The demons almost dropped my casks in their haste, and ran back through the gate. When the last demon was gone, the God Pejoru sealed but did not destroy the gate. He looked at me, and I felt his mind in my mind.
He withdrew, and I shuddered. I felt awe at having been in such intimate contact with one of the Gods! I was left with a feeling of euphoria.
"Paul," Pejoru said gently, "While I applaud your wanting to set things in order, did it occur to you that the demons and the Ancients might have other things going on, and plans that you have no idea of?" Pejoru asked me curiously.
"Yes, my lord, it did. But I felt and saw nothing in the way of them trying to trick me. I am just reporting what I have been told, and have learned, nothing more," I said with a bow to him.
"Very well, I will take you back to the palace. By the way. I have canceled all the spells that were added to your cloak and rings, with one exception. I feel it will be good to keep one communication spell open with the Ancients until such time as a consensus is reached on what actions we will take," Pejoru told me.
I was stunned to find out I had brought back spells that had been placed on my personal items! How did I miss seeing it when my things had been returned to me? I mean, I had checked each and every item before I put them on!
"The Ancients were, and still are, very powerful. Each one is as strong as Vostich at a minimum. You were lucky in your dealings with them," Pejoru said to me.
I barely noticed when we went from the gate's location, back to the palace. I'll give this to the Gods, they are very smooth when they do something! One second we were at the now sealed demon gate, the next we were in the palace, including my five casks of wine!
"I think we will all meet in Queen Mirwanna's private dining room. It is large enough to comfortably seat all who will be summoned," Pejoru told me, and I felt his summons go out, but since I was with him, he didn't really include me in it.
Mirwanna was speaking. "You have all heard Paul's report. I will now open the topic for discussion," she said in a business-like tone of voice.
Vostich rose. "We have to assume that they are not telling us everything. What little I know of them, is from the Gods. They have nothing but very bad memories, concerning the Ancients. I say we do not have anything more to do with them," he stated firmly and sat.
Fithian rose. "While my father has his doubts, Paul did say that the Creator himself said they might redeem themselves. Perhaps this is the time of that redemption. I vote we open negotiations. Paul?" Fithian asked me and sat.
I rose slowly. I was worried about several things that could go wrong in this.
"First, while I might sympathize with their plight, they had brought it on themselves, and by their own actions. Second, they are in a war they admittedly did not start, but say they will fight, just to keep open the gate that now opens to their world.
"My problem and fear is, what if they reach an accommodation with the demons? If they allied themselves with someone of Lord Shaitan or Morningstar's power, even our Gods might be hard pressed to stop an invasion of this world.
"According to their history --as related to me by their own leader-- they had a God or Gods captured, and on the ropes, so to speak. Do we want something like that to happen again? In all honesty, I vote no," I said and sat.
Mirwanna stood. "As queen of Landkur, I must take in all aspects of anything before casting my vote, or committing my country to a specific course of action. I will abstain, until such a time as more information is brought to me. I do not wish to sound like a politician, but a decision on this subject is too important to make lightly," Mirwanna said and sat.
So, vote-wise, it stood at one "yes", two "no's", with one abstaining. Still I was asked to repeat again and again, several different aspects of my capture. The Gods had withdrawn, but you never knew when they might be listening. This concerned them, probably more than most.
About an hour later the conversation started to lull, and Mirwanna ordered a meal served. Vositch asked for everyone's attention.
"While we are in an agreement here, we still need someone to act as liaison with the demons. It all hinges on what happens with the demons. You told the demons what the Ancients told you?" Vostich asked me. I nodded.
"Then despite what we decide here, the demons are where the final decision will lay. Someone has to get back there, and keep an eye on them. Someone they trust. Someone who has built a rapport with them," Vostich said, and they all looked at me.
I felt a sinking feeling in my stomach. Something told me I was in for an extended visit to demon-land. I was not looking forward to that, or to telling my wife, Mariel about it. I sighed. I was saved from answering with the arrival of the meal.
I had one of the casks broached, and the wine went well with the meal. Vostich identified it almost immediately. Seems he used to receive casks of this until the world that made it fell under the demons influence.
Strange. They said they traded with that world. I was almost sure that was what Shaitan told me. I realized what I was thinking, and shook my head. I had started falling for their party line almost immediately!
It also appeared they wanted me to go back, to keep an eye on the demons. Like I had any power to do anything if they decided to go with the Ancients! What did they expect me to do? I already realized I had taken the demons at face value. Big mistake.
After dinner I excused myself. There was nothing more I could tell them that I had not already said a half dozen times, anyway. I had to go find Mariel, and explain that I would probably be going back to the demons, for an extended period of time.
I went back to my apartment and discovered she was not there. Ok, where would she be? She was pregnant. Her family had gone back to their own land, which left my sister, who was in conference, or... Trayla. The two had become fast friends over the last year. Trayla was like a little sister to my wife.
Ok. So I was a coward. After I figured out where she probably was, I stayed at the apartment. I was worrying that she might demand to go with me. There was no way I was going to allow my wife to go with me into the demon's land.
So I took the time I had, and went into Pejoru's library and studied spells. I am not sure how long I was there, but I had spell after spell committed to memory before I was interrupted.
"Hi, Stranger!" my wife said to me.
Startled, I turned. There was my wife, whom I really wasn't trying to avoid. It just looked that way. She thought it looked that way, too, and tore into me.
"This is how you treat me? You come back, go into closed meetings I can't get into, don't even bother looking for me. Don't you love me anymore?" she wound down with a sniffle.
I assured her I loved her. I put my arms around her and kissed her.
"Of course I love you still. I had nothing to do with your not being able to get into the meeting, Mariel. That must have been Mirwanna's doing..." which was as far as I got.
Mariel really went at me. I was blaming others for my mistakes. I was lower than a worm. She went on and on. I let her rant. When a wife was in this type of mood, I had learned from watching other married couples over the last hundred years that it was useless to protest your innocence.
She finally wound down. With tears in her eyes, she asked me what I was doing here. I explained that it was likely I would be going back to the demon's world soon, and I wanted to spell up.
She stared at me.
"Well, I will be going with you this time. If you're going back, chances are you will be gone for sometime, correct?" she asked with a glare.
"Yes. I think you're right," I told her.
"Then I am going with you. I can take care of myself. Also, they won't dare try anything with me," she said a bit smugly.
She had me curious now. "Why won't they try anything?" I asked.
"First, you're my husband. Second, the Gods are interested in us directly. Third, Pejoru has agreed to watch over me," she finished.
Hmmm, Pejoru was her family's patron God. If he were watching over her, she most likely would be safe. Still, I didn't want her anywhere near a demon.
"I don't think you have thought this all the way through. What makes you think the baby will be alright in the land of demons? Also, while the Gods might protect us from direct attack by the demons, nothing can protect you from your own bad decisions," I said firmly.
"What do you mean?" Mariel asked me.
"Simply this. I was warned by the Gods about demons, and the Ancients. So what happened? I got to like a demon. I believed everything an Ancient said to me. They are both that persuasive!
"So, no. There is no way I am allowing my wife, who is with child, to enter into the land of the demons. Mariel I went in KNOWING the power of their voice. What did I do? I tried to keep a level head, and still did my best to please them. I shook hands with the devil for Christ's sake!" I exclaimed, still angry with myself.
"But if I go with you, we will have each other. We can support each other. If one of us gets weak, the other can prop them up," she said, still trying to persuade.
I was shaking my head even before she finished her sentence. What would I have to do to convince her to stay behind?
Edited By TeNderLoin