Chapter 17: Rise Of The Cult

Sequoia rushed forward, bending to help her brother sit up as my guard captain caught his breath.

"My Ruler," he said in his deep voice, "he's joined the Planeless."

I gaped, heart stopping in place as Sequoia shook her head far more firmly than necessary.

"Impossible," she said, glancing my way while Jabuticabron sagged, face falling in exhaustion. "He would never do such a

thing."

"And yet, he did, sister," Jabut said. His broad face wrinkled in frustration. "We are in serious trouble, Ruler."

Sassafras wriggled in my arms until I put him down. He waddled to the bench and hopped up, climbing into Jabut's lap.

"Tell us everything," he said.

The large guard stroked the cat's silver fur gently. "There's little to tell, brother," he said. "We left here directly

with the plan to scout a large group of Planeless gathering past Nunaresh." The outlier's city wasn't aligned with any

planes, so I supposed such a location for their meeting was the most logical. "I've never seen so many demons gathered in

one place." He swallowed hard, hands clutching at Sassafras as his eyes locked on me. "Ruler, they chanted a name over

and over, a mass of demons so large and diverse in plane power I worry they've emptied many of the outer planes already

of their inhabitants."

Though of limited power, the residents of the outer planes nonetheless fed the Node and kept those areas in balance and

connected to the rest of us.

"Go on," I said.

"When he appeared, they all bowed to him," Jabut said, an air of awe in his voice. "He told them to rise, that their days

of bowing were over."

"What did they call him?" Sassafras's crispness seemed to cut through his brother's moment of shock.

"Xeoniteridone," Jabut whispered. "He was... my Ruler, he was nothing short of magnificent."

It was difficult to contain my irritation at such a response, not to mention my worry over such a clear and blatant

attempt to control my population. "What did Ram do, Jabut?"

The large guard nodded swiftly, drawing a steadying breath. "It was his plan to infiltrate the cult," he said. "I did my

best to attempt to convince him otherwise, but he insisted the only way to uncover the truth was to join the Planeless

and see its power structure from the inside."

The young fool, Ahbi sighed.

"Knowing full well he'd lose access to his power," I snapped, anger fed by fear rising to the surface and taking control

of me. I allowed its dominance. I would need such to keep me from going after Ram and personally wringing his neck.

"Brother," Sequoia said, "answer me this. Were the cult members drinking nectar?"

Jabuticabron frowned before nodding slowly. "They were," he said. "Though like no nectar I've ever seen before."

I suppose we've answered that question then, Ahbi sent.

"Was it purple?" Sequoia met my eyes.

Jabut nodded again, sealing the deal as he looked back and forth between us with growing concern piled onto his already

giant weight of worry. "What has happened?"

I stepped away, turning my back on them as Sequoia told her brother of their father's discovery. Ram's face swam in my

mind, the need to know his fate burning holes in my patience until I turned back to the three siblings even as I reached

out with the power of Demonicon and tried to find him.

My other attempts had been mostly half-hearted, knowing he was meant to contact me and likely hid from outside contact as

a protective measure. But this time I refused to hold back, sharply focused on finding and retrieving him while

Jabuticabron went on with his story.

"We found nothing we could use, had no other way to uncover information," the guard captain said, his entire being

begging me to forgive him. "Rameranselot ordered me to return here to you and tell you of his plans. But I remained and

waited to see what would become of him. I couldn't simply abandon him to the Planeless in case his duplicity was

uncovered."

Cold fingers of fear danced a soft pattering rhythm up my spine though my skin burned with a sudden sweat. "They found

out he was spying."

Jabut's face twisted, the hulking guard so near to tears of his own I had to catch my breath in answer to his distress.

"Ruler, they did not," he said. "There was no need. The moment he drank of the nectar, he was lost. I almost pulled him

out then, but to do so would have exposed me to their power and I, too, would be gone." He hung his big head. "I would

have gone with him, but my responsibility to you is more powerful than my loyalty to him." Jabut beat the side of his

head with one fist in a burst of disgraced anger. "I don't deserve to continue serving you."

Sequoia caught his hand before he could hurt himself while I searched and hunted for any trace of Ram. "This is not your

fault," she said, eyes pleading with me to speak up, to save her brother from his shame. Ahbi's swift anger cracked my

frozen soul.

He should be punished for abandoning his post, she snapped.

Shut up, Grandmother, I shot back as the power of Demonicon sniffed out the last trail of my demon friend and found it at

last. I followed it swiftly along the path of where Ram had been, slamming with more force than I intended into a wall of

darkness as the trail ended abruptly.

Something reached back. I flinched, Demonicon's magic fleeing from the emptiness as we retreated to the Seat with my

heart pounding and the fear I knew who was behind this alive and well again.

"Meira." Sassafras leaped from his brother's lap and came to me. "What is it?"

I bent and lifted him into my arms yet again, hands shaking for a far different reason this time. "The Brotherhood," I

said, the reminder of them fresh now I'd encountered this strange power. "We're certain they are destroyed?"

Sass snarled a whine of unhappiness before shuddering his cat body. "They are reduced to nothing," he said. "Why?"

I opened to him, allowed him to feel what I'd felt at the other end of Ram's trail. "It feels like sorcery," I said.

"That emptiness is so familiar, isn't it?"

He was silent a moment before snorting. "There are no sorcerers here on Demonicon," he said with so much conviction I

doubted what I'd felt immediately. He'd trained me well from childhood to accept what he said as truth. But I wasn't a

little girl any longer and had been through enough trials on my own I pushed past my reaction and challenged him as I'd

never done before.

"We're absolutely certain of that?" Even Ahbi felt hesitant though she had been as adamant as Sassafras was just now. I

turned to Jabut. "When Ram drank the nectar, what happened to him?"

"I tried to maintain mental contact," Jabut said, misery coloring his voice, raising it until he sounded almost child-

like. "But when he drank, it was as though a shutter closed around him, cutting him off from me. And the instant change

in him, the way he looked at their leader..." Jabut shuddered. "I managed to pull him away from them for a moment, to see

if he was simply acting the part. He turned them on me, my Ruler." Jabut shook, face crumpling as his lower lip trembled.

"They surrounded me, attempted to force me to drink the nectar. Ram was in the forefront, encouraging me. I've never seen

such fanaticism. It was no act, I swear it to you." He sagged against his much smaller sister. "I was fortunate enough to

fight my way free, though it wasn't much of a fight, in all honesty. Their attempt to hold me down faded at serious

resistance, declarations of peace and love falling from their lips like poison." Jabut's hands coiled in his lap as

though he wished to strangle something or someone. "I was shocked they actually let me go, as though believing the

propaganda they spewed. But Ram is one of them, now. And if someone like him can be so easily lost, I fear we are all at

risk."

We all fell silent, Pagomaris huddled in the corner, staring with wide eyes as the rest of us fought with our thoughts.

"Let's say this is some kind of sorcery-based power," Sassafras said. "Where would it come from? In all the thousands of

years Demonicon has existed, sorcery has never appeared."

"You're certain?" I hugged him in apology. "Of course you are. All right, then. That leaves an outside introduction.

We've already seen two sorcerers come to Demonicon."

"Syd and Ameline don't precisely count," Sass said. "Your sister and her dead nemesis were both on the path to becoming

maji at the time and had demon souls to help them cross over."

"So whoever this Xeoniteridone is," I said, "could he have come from Earth?"

Sass looked up at me, sparks flaring in his eyes. "Another demon hybrid child."

Ahbi grunted her disagreement. The crossings of demon children from the other plane have been exceedingly rare. And not

one of them had done so during my watch.

Which leaves mine, I sent, including Sass in our private conversation. Since this whole cult thing appears to be recent,

could Xeoniteridone have crossed over in the last year or so?

Possibly, Ahbi sent. Though I'm certain we would have felt it.

Unless he used sorcery to mask his crossing, Sass sent. If that's the case, he could have come over at any time and your

argument, Ahbi, is invalid.

If the Brotherhood is involved, I sent, we should tell Syd. This could mean they are gaining a foothold on Earth all over

again.

Sassafras's claws dug into my arm. It is possible this is a coincidence as well, he sent. I know, I know, I don't really

believe in them either. But there is a chance if it is a hybrid child with sorcery, he made his way here on his own.

I really had to talk to Syd.

Regardless, Ahbi sent, we now know we have a huge problem on our hands. We need a plan and the freedom to execute it.

I groaned, thinking of the fight I just had with my Second Seat. The likelihood of Henemordonin backing me on anything

from now on is pretty much out the window.

Not if he understands how important this is for the safety of Demonicon, Ahbi sent.

We'll see, I sent. I spun back and addressed the others. "Pagomaris," I said, "can you please fetch Jabuticabron a

refreshment and something to eat." She flashed me a relieved smile, her servant's soul showing her gratitude for giving

her something to do in this time of stress. My aide bobbed a fast curtsy before fleeing the room. "Sequoia," I set

Sassafras down again, crossing to the window with swift steps, staring out at the distant tower were her father lived.

"I'd like you to fetch your father. I want him working here, in the Seat, for the duration. Where I can get my hands on

him when I need him."

She rose gracefully, tiny body tense but expression firm and sure. "I'll return presently," she said before hurrying out.

I finally sat next to Jabuticabron who focused his attention on his large hands, hands that shook as much as mine. I took

one of them between my fingers and flooded him with the power of our planes.

"I'm so sorry, Ruler," he whispered, thick lips loose as he slumped forward. "I wish I had just killed their leader when

I had the chance." He did look up at last, a giant of a demon reduced to misery. "For, I fear if something isn't done in

short order, Xeoniteridone will have converted the entirety of Demonicon within the next few months, and there will be

nothing we can do to stop him."

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