75

Human screams mingle with the demon's shrieks as it lashes out at one of the militia members with its dark tendrils, sending her sprawling to the ground. You doubt anyone will notice you're using an illusion instead of your own voice, under the circumstances. The question is if you have any hope of keeping hold of the spell and the sound of the trade language yourself.

You put the shouts and the terror aside as you focus on remembering the syllables of the whispery language Min taught you. It's easier than you expected. Crafting an illusion lets you project the hissing sounds over the clamor of the battle, and the demon turns to you almost immediately and says something back. It still sounds more like a thunderstorm than a human voice, but you can almost distinguish words.

No words you understand, of course, but you shape Min's phrase into the air again.

The demon pulls back from the battle, rising higher as it stares at you. The limbs stop twisting, but its whole flickering body is shuddering as it hangs in the air. You can't distinguish any facial features but the red eyes, but they don't look as angry as before. You'd almost swear the creature is confused. Before you can repeat the phrase, it vanishes and does not reappear.

Next

Silence falls over the clearing.

"What was that, Jun? What have you done?" The voice comes from Captain Haris, pale and trembling but apparently in control of themself again, standing over Dalton's unmoving body. The other members of the militia are staring in much the same way. Some are searching the skies as if expecting the demon to return, while others are too dazed even to help their fallen comrades.

"What have you done, Jun?" Alvis repeats in a low voice. Behind him on the hill, Meredith gives you what you think is a puzzled look and then retreats.

What have you done? Negotiated with a demon, apparently. There will undoubtedly be more questions to come, not the least of which is where the demon has gone.

The members of the militia assist the wounded and attend to the dead. No one invites you to follow when they start trudging back toward Pasema.

Alvis shoves his spectacles up onto his forehead and presses a hand against his face. "Book and Crown, they think we're demon sympathizers now," he moans. "Maybe it's better we don't go back to Pasema at all. Unless you think there's something we can do to make this better?"

.You and Alvis are alone outside the portal now. The sky hasn't lightened since the demon's departure, but the evening darkness is much more natural now. You suppose you'll need to find somewhere to spend the night, but it's hard to think of traveling.

Practicing swordplay isn't something you've spent a lot of time doing, particularly not without a sparring partner. You mostly wind up swinging the blade around aimlessly.

"This looks very important," Alvis says, folding his arms as he watches you fumble and twirl, "but do you think we might have larger concerns?"

You and Alvis are just trying to figure out where you'll be spending the night when you hear footsteps. You lift your heads to see Meredith approaching you. She smiles at you. "That was a risk," she says. "It's been centuries since the Sienhans or their trade tongue had any contact beyond the portal. I wish you'd just let me speak, but I'm glad you saved him anyway."

"Saved the demon?" you ask. "I thought I was saving the town. Or the world."

"It doesn't have to be a choice," Meredith says. "Can we speak? Perhaps I should have spoken more before. It would have been more fair."

Alvis immediately agrees, and there seems to be little to do but accompany the two of them. You aren't entirely surprised when Meredith suggests you remain in the portal clearing.

Next

The guards outside Pasema don't seem inclined to go much past the town itself, so you don't expect to be disturbed. And it's true that there aren't any guards, but you do very quickly discover Min running up the path toward you.

"Hello," they say, stepping up next to you as though they were expected. "I'm glad I caught you. I confess I've been out looking for you. I don't think we were quite finished earlier, and I wanted to talk about what happened tonight."

Alvis pauses in staring suspiciously at Meredith to stare incredulously at Min. "The singer? You haven't dealt with them, Jun?"

You're not certain exactly how Alvis was expecting you to do that.

"They may as well stay," Meredith says, unruffled. "As it happens, I likely need to speak to them as well."

Min gives her a long look of consideration. "Would you be the mysterious stranger telling people I'm a mage?" they ask.

You get the sense that forcing Min to leave would be more trouble than it's worth, particularly after Meredith's invitation, but Alvis is allowing himself to look openly furious.

It occurs to you that you never told Alvis about Min's powers in the midst of the demon attack. He doesn't look pleased to hear your explanation, though you imagine he'd be more furious if he weren't obviously exhausted.

"Perfect," he says, rubbing at his forehead. "This is perfect. We're making alliances with demons, and now we're being stalked by a lie-detecting bard."

"Don't worry, Alvis," Meredith says, though she's gazing at the portal rather than at him. "There's more yet to come."

Alvis sits down in the grass. "If you know something, I assure you I'm very happy to hear it."

"No, you aren't," Min says cheerfully, sitting down beside him. Alvis puts his head in his hands.

Meredith is still staring at the portal. She walks up to it, closer than any of the militia dared go. "Have you ever heard of a demon called Cadafel?" she asks.

Meredith looks uncertain. "It's surprising how little notion I have of how to tell this story," she murmurs, "considering how long I've had to prepare." She shakes her head, as if clearing it. "I would imagine that you haven't. Ilias tried his hardest to hide the real story away."

"Ilias?" Alvis repeats, sitting straighter. "Are you on a first-name basis with Ilias the Realm-Warden?"

This draws Meredith's attention away from the portal. Her eyes have gone very cold. "You know nothing about the man you're speaking of," she says. "It was Cadafel that Ilias set out to fight, the first time he shut this door." She reaches up a hand and lays it on the shimmer in the air, where it rests as if the portal were a solid thing.

"There wasn't one demon-lord when the Realm-Warden sealed the portal," Alvis objects. "There was a whole horde of them."

"He put out the story afterward that there were more, that the whole of demonkind meant to menace humanity," Meredith says, tracing a finger along the portal. "But it was a lie. There was one vile creature set on tearing down both this world and his own, and for his crimes, Ilias closed a door forever."

Before you can ask anything else, Meredith pulls back a fist and strikes the shimmer in the air with all her might. There's a resounding crack, and you'd swear she must have broken her hand or even her whole arm, but when she backs away, both her body and the portal are unchanged.

Next

She's telling the truth, you know," Min says, looking unusually solemn. "Anyone in Sienha could tell you the same. We used to work side-by-side with the demons, for marvelous magical and scholarly innovations. Then, one day, your Realm-Warden took them all away."

"So that's what you've come to say, then? The demons were the innocent victims all this time?" Alvis scoffs. "You're one of them yourself, aren't you? Your odd knowledge, your odd powers. And every child knows how demons strive to mislead." He glances at Min. "You can tell, can't you? Have you heard her lie?"

Min laughs. "Do you think all honest people are demons? What a difficult life you must lead." They sober slightly, considering Meredith. "We've only just met, but she does have a lovely voice," they say.