Chapter 17: Gorowrath's Secret

1

There are demons ahead of us. Ben though. At least a dozen.

Indeed he was right. Fifteen demons were wandering in the caverns before them, blocking their path. It was possible to breach through without getting noticed, but they were injured, and they ran out of demon blood, and their own blood could provoke them. Stumped, Ben took off his sweater to cool off the heat. Furthermore, he tried to wipe away all of the blood visible on his body. The trail of blood that June left for them was still leading forward, but with the demons looming over their heads, it was difficult to see anything.

'What should we do?' asked Sammy.

'I don't know,' replied Ben. We don't have demon blood, so we can't advance. He thought grittily. I shouldn't have dropped the vials. Ben's original plan was to smear demon blood all over them, and since demons didn't have a great vision, they could fool them into thinking that they belonged to one of them. The plan was executed perfectly—for about half an hour ago, they encountered the two armoured demon soldiers and walked right past them, their human scent overpowered by the festering blood. But due to complications, Ben somehow dropped them somewhere when they were crawling up a tight and occupied slope. He'd heard the vials shatter behind him, and his heart had stopped in dismay.

'Forget what I said about demons being neutral,' he remembered hearing Ozin say. 'That's how they used to behave. Now, I think that under the Talisman's influence, they'd grown hostile and will attack anything that smells unfamiliar to them in their vicinity.'

'And what is their vicinity?' He had asked.

'Three metres,' Ozin had replied.

Three metres. He recalled, unfazed by the demons wandering outside their hiding place. So we have to play a game of avoiding moving landmines, huh? Sammy turned to him nervously. Ben took his hand and peeked from the hiding place. There were only fifteen of them, and they weren't tightly packed together, either. A lot of vacant space we could work with. Ben would just have to calculate the 3-metre radius where the demons get provoked if Ozin's working theory was correct, that is. This is it. He breathed nervously. Time to see if my intellect could save us. This situation is most tricky, as not only does he have to guess where the demons would move, but also worries about Sammy's position as well. There are a few ways I could tackle this. He chewed his lip. Go first and signal Sammy once I get through, or go together. The clearly easier option would be the second one, but going together would pose harm to both of them if he made an error. His attention turned to the stalagmites that were half the height of him, and the demons casually stepped over. 

Not noticing anything going on around them. It was almost as if… Demonlord set this death game up for them deliberately. But that's impossible, right?

Still, we're running out of time. Ben thought, sweat running down his slick forehead. Every moment we linger, it's one step closer to Ozin getting murdered. That would be too terrible. But even as he reached up, his father's voice rang through his head.

You'll only die trying to save them. 

'Shut up, I don't care,' he whispered angrily. He glared at the demons again, holding Sam's hand and making as little noise as possible. Time to make a move.

He took one step forward, reminding himself to stay focused, as he could see the way through to the other side, sharp, vivid images began appearing in his mind. Three metres in radius. Got to remember that. Oh no, there's a blind spot behind a rock pillar. I can't see. Come on! Visualise every turning stone! And those demons—they aren't moving at random. Nothing is random. Even this non-existent mountain has a pattern in its place. June figured that out… and I must protect her. Every second I waste now will haunt me later if she gets into trouble and I can't save her. Come on, Benjamin Faley! Think! The demons are moving with a pattern so different from one another and incredibly complex. They must be disassembled individually for me to process. There are only fifteen of them. You can handle it! Believe in yourself! Look for the ace in the hole!

'Come on, Ben,' encouraged Sam. 'You can do it!

Ben swallowed hard. After a few minutes of examination, he'd gotten every one of their movement patterns memorised, combining it with the map of the speleothem in his head. Even so, this isn't going to be east. I've solved the route, but it requires key timing and precise movement to get past them. It's a lot trickier than it looks, which is why people won't be able to see it coming. This is just barely possible for both of us to go simultaneously, avoiding every solid obstacle, not provoking any demons, and safely making it to the other side. I praise you, Demonlord. Your cleverness is unmatched, but so is your distastefulness. Don't take a slight bit of it as a compliment, for I will hunt you until the hellfire consumes your soul. Even with the prior knowledge on how to beat this death game, I still can't guarantee a one hundred per cent pass, not to mention without. There's only one way to find out; there's no more precious time to waste, no more options for us to lose.

Thus, the game began.

The low growling produced by the dazing demons was proven to be quite a distraction for him, and he couldn't afford to lose his concentration. If we get too close, they would smell us, SMELL US – Ben shook his head at the absent thought. The obstacles were a problem, too, as they couldn't see behind them. Everything must be done in the mind. Eyes are useless at this point. 

He moved swiftly but carefully with Sammy on his shoulders. The adrenaline inside him was increasing his heart rate, thus giving him more agility and speed. My parents would cringe if they ever saw how fast I was running. Although distraught, he giggled furiously, not helping it. STAY FOCUSED! His mind shouted at him. QUIT YOUR BAD HABITS! YOU ALWAYS COME UP WITH THE WEIRDEST THOUGHTS POSSIBLE WHEN THE SITUATION IS THE MOST DIRE! Don't forget the route! He gasped sharply when he almost tripped over a protruding stalagmite that would have resulted in them both getting killed.

Take ten steps forward at the rate of two steps per second for five seconds, then wait for two seconds before circling to the front of Obstacle #1 in a split second, followed by a three-time repeat of turning left, then taking two steps and turning right then taking five steps. This set course is safe to perform as long as I finish in the due time of five seconds. Finish by climbing aloft the rock obstacle #2 at three o'clock, concluding quarter one of the route.

Begin the second quarter of the course by waiting ten seconds for demon #4 to clear the pathway, and then repeat the movement in quarter one in reverse order and stand in position x, providing maximum cover to begin the third quarter.

Maximum Cover from the second quarter was crucial as this would probably be the hardest quarter to perform. Position x provides a twenty-second break time before Demon #9 begins returning from its clockwise orbit around Obstacle #2. The only alternative to position would be position y as it has a 50% chance to fail due to demon #10's crosspath route, but would have provided unlimited break time to recover. In this case, it's better to play safe than play chance. In the end, position y would be pointless but mirrors the movement of Maximum Cover to get to position z—the last checkpoint. In order from left to right, take two steps to the left, forward four, right five, and forward one. Move back one step to avoid the radius of demon #12 for half a second. Raise your left hand to avoid the chance of getting skimmed by demon #11, after which lunge forward just before demon #12 comes back. Demon #13 and #14 perform a rigid but tedious side-and-front crawl that gives you a split-second chance to advance forward by one step. They're at the back, left, and right, respectively. This annoying process would take about four to five minutes before finally being able to reach the last quarter.

Demon #15 deserves its own quarter, as my head is unable to adapt to its movement. It sat right in front of the exit and moved on its will. Demonlord wanted to test our improvisation, but I would not let him win. 

Ben's mind passed through these four paragraphs of instructions over and over again as he manoeuvred through them. With Sammy sitting on his shoulders, his mind processed them faster than a camera could register a taken picture.

But I will not let him win.

He managed to get to the last quarter of the route smoothly, as he called it, but the last demon seemed to mock them. It took its sweet time sitting by the doorway and looked sound asleep. Sammy stomped the ground furiously, tears of frustration rolled down his teddy bear eyes. 'That's it,' Sammy scowled angrily. 'We'll never get through it.'

The final demon was probably very self-entitled and defiantly believed that nothing could get in its way if it never gave them a chance to. The demon laughed hysterically in its mind as it waited for its victims to give up. It waited… and waited. Eventually, though, it stopped waiting because Ben walked up to it, and twisted the sleeping demon's neck so hard it broke. It could only writhe in agony as it sensed its prey stepping over its body and ran off—presumably—to the master's lair/bedroom.

'How pathetic,' Sammy remarked pitifully.

2

Demonlord stood over the blood basin, his claw gripped onto Ozin's ankle tightly. Dangling him over it like a ventriloquist dummy. Ozin hung there, lifeless and drenched in the bloody mixture. His mouth was wide open, gasping for breath. His eyes stared at distant things. Demonlord's eyes squinted at the human girls testily., surprised by the gladiuses held tightly in their hands. His nostril flared as he exalted, obviously shocked.

'Maxy, my dear child. What brings you here at this unholy hour? Why is it that, instead of sound asleep in your bedroom, like you should be, you burst through my door with an intruder by your side, demanding for me to release this green worm of an Alpino? It seems that you're armed. Too. you, out of all people,' Demonlord hissed soothingly, yet undeniable rage was spouting from his purple glare. He dropped the gasping hermit onto the ground and walked casually towards them like strolling in a park. His four legs—as stupendous as it might look—cooperated together with perfect synergy. 'Don't you think it's a little too far off for you to rebel against me?' his calm and soothing voice was getting on her nerves.

'Stay away!' Maxy raised her voice, trying to make herself look tougher than she was. 'I'm warning you. You know how delicate demon skin is to sharp objects.'

'Oh really?' Demonlord looked as if he was genuinely shocked, extending his scaly arm testily. 'Go on, try to cut me.' he laughed mockingly. 'You –' But before he could continue rambling, Maxy drew back her sword with extreme reaction speed and thrust it into his scales. His smile faded as he felt blood trickling down his forearm. The sword barely cut through—managing to rupture a vessel beneath those tough scales. As she pulled the sword back out, he let out a loud, deafening roar.

And that's when the room started shaking. Hundreds of stalactites trembled in their place, threatening to fall like a fragile maple leaf during autumn. June swore she heard some sandy dust fall onto her shoulder, although that might not be real because Demonlord was rupturing her eardrums. She clapped her hands over them and screamed. Maxy did the same. He's a real monster. She thought. The kind that could accidentally kill you if you let your guard down even for a second. Even through all the loud noise, June heard a shout of ferocity echoing through the chamber.

'You little brat! I'll kill you!'

'I've never served anyone, and you're definitely not the first!' June heard her say. 'I've found real friends… real friends that I can trust!

'To hell with all of you!' Demonlord retorted and unleashed a horrifying attack—his claws grew red hot as he chased them around the chamber, vibrating purple from the amethyst decorations and bursting into crimson flames. A fire bolt sizzled through the air as he aimed his index finger at the children. Maxy saw it coming—wrapping her skinny arms around June and diving to the ground. A wooden workbench behind them immediately combusted into flames.

'Sister!' Maxy cried, not too loudly. 'Take my pocket knife and free Ozin! I can hold him off and distract him—but not for long! Hurry!'

'Got it!' she replied before catching the handle that Maxy flung. Behind them, the pursuing footsteps got louder and faster as she ran for her life. My legs ache. She panted. I'd not run like this for a long time, and the room's too large. These fires help a bit, but not much from the stone pillars blocking my view. I need to loop back around to find Ozin. I must free him.

Meanwhile, Demonlord ignored June and went after Maxy, like they thought he would. Distraught and outright furious, he yelled at her. 

'What is the meaning of this, child? I treated you like I would treat my own children. You said that our food was inhumane, so I sent an entire expedition crew to retrieve livestock and vegetables for a week down Sorrow Mountain; you didn't want to sleep with my people, so I gave you your own room to sleep in, like a princess! I gave you resources that other demons could only dream of having! And now I see it, it's certainly more than you deserve!' He fired three more fireballs from his fingertips that missed her legs by a mere inch. Despite bargaining with her, he was certainly trying to kill her, from what she previously learned.

Even as she ran, she spoke with clarity and tears in her eyes.

'Deserve? You should be answering what I did to deserve all this. You trapped me here from the start. All I ever wanted was to be free. Even before I accidentally came here, I wanted to reunite with my family, and what did you do instead? You put a metal collar on my waist to prevent me from escaping and chained my ankles together to a weight before that. Certainly! Yes, I refused to eat human flesh and drink demon blood, and you already thought of a solution to prevent me from starving to death. Bargaining! You bargain with me because deep down, you always knew how powerless I am. You made me a nice room, and gave human food and even clothes because you knew who I was to you. A pet. A literal pet that you could boss around as long as you give it what you think it wants. You could beat me half to death, make me bleed, and break all my bones, you could still get away with what you do because you use what you provide me as a weapon against me!' She screamed those last words at the top of her lungs. For a second, she thought she might pass out, that her legs would buckle beneath her without warning. Then, she would die at the hands of her 'benefactor' and 'caretaker'. What a load of bullshit.

Then she was running again, running for freedom, running away from the demon that had trapped her for the past two miserable years. She was very calm and didn't even flinch when a stalactite broke free from the ceiling and almost impaled through her head. It's almost over now. She smiled serenely. Any moment now, he would use one of its abilities to vaporise me into steam. I would die alone. At some point, she got tired of running and dropped to the ground, eager for her life to end. What are you thinking? Her mind screamed. You mustn't give in now! When the battle barely started!

She stood up from her spot and glared at Demonlord with her piercing royal blue eyes. Demonlord froze in astonishment. She spoke slowly and solemnly, never letting go of her gaze.

'Let me go, please. I don't want to be used anymore. I never did. I want to go back to my parents and tell them I'm sorry, that I will never leave them again. I want to go home, my actual home, where I can have a nice supper with my family and play with my brother and his new set of action figures. Jesus, he would be eight by now, the same age as me when I left. I want to repay them for how much pain I've caused them for the last two years. From this moment onward, I need nothing from you, just what I originally had when I first encountered this dastardly place. I give it all back. You can keep my 'luxurious princess' room along with all the other resources to share amongst your civilians if you're selfless enough.' She paused briefly. 'Oh, and one more thing, give the Talisman back to where it originally belonged if you will. Keeping it would only cause the world to fall apart, and eventually, you'll die with it. I hope you understand.' Demon watched in awe as this ten-year-old girl bowed down to him. For a moment, he was almost moved. Almost.

'My dear Maxy,' he suddenly broke down too quickly for a person of his stature. 'I just wanted you to be happy, nothing else.' Maxy looked astounded when tears rolled down Demonlord's sullen cheeks. 'I never thought that's how you felt all along. If you feel like leaving, I'm not going to stop you. You can go wherever you want, and I won't care.' 

She nodded hesitantly. This all feels too good to be real. Her survival instincts told her anxiously. Demonlord never acted like this before, he must have something up his sleeves. But Demonlord was even bowing like she was the superior one here.

'It's true! You can head off right now!'

That's so weird. Maxy blinked. Either way, I –

And that's when a sharp, glassy pain curled around her stomach. Crying, she held the metal collar tightly with her blister-filled hands. The metal spikes drove into her with an anger she'd never experienced. Even after countless times when her torso injuries were reopened, it had never pierced this deep before. She dropped to her knees, breathing rapidly. Through her blurring vision, she saw Demonlord's features turn back. He was looking at her with a half-smile, half-grimace. But his eyes—they were dark red. What the actual hell? She winced. His pupils changed from a lightless black to a crimson red that matched his sclera. A strange aura revolved around his massive body.

'However…' he continued. His voice became terrifyingly deep and husky, like when somebody had tuberculosis. 'I would not tolerate my treasure that I worked so hard to get to be taken away with zero conditions!'

For a split second, she thought her stomach had been split open, that she was going to faint from the pain stabbing into her like needles. Blood was already pooling down her slacks, like many times before. Demonlord won't give the talisman up, even if it becomes the end of the world. Maxy shivered. She was trying her best, clenching her teeth and shutting her eyes. Demonlord went hard on her this time, driving her to her knees. He'd probably lost it as soon as he bowed, for a megalomaniac of his stature. He planned to make me pay from the beginning. This is it for me. My stomach hurts so much I can't move. June, how much longer? I can't hold him any longer. I'm going to die bleeding out. How much longer 'til your companions arrive? I don't know, but I can't stand it anymore. This is pure agony. Somebody help me, break his connection. Distract him, break his connection. Please!

'Hey, you scumbag!' June's voice sounded distant to her. 'While you were busy hurting her, I came real close to you.' She paused for the Demonlord to process before plunging the pocket knife into his back. He produced an ultra-loud screech. The spell that controlled Maxy's collar was instantly broken, and she felt her pain ease. 'And now… turn your attention towards me!' June shouted before pulling the knife back out.

'You annoying rat!' Demonlord screamed in fury, swinging his burning claws at her. She dodged all of them—barely, and tripped over a rock while backing up. 'Die!' He suddenly launched his tail like a wrecking ball that flew at her.

Too fast! He's got a tail! June realised. I can't dodge it!

Demonlord's tail froze in midair as a purple sphere appeared, surrounding it.

'Dissipate!'

Upon contacting the dissipate sphere, Demonlord's tail was severed into a thousand pieces. Blue blood flew everywhere. Shocked, Demonlord turned around and saw Ozin—breathing heavily and covered in blood—freed from his restraints.

'Dissipate,' he repeated. One of his eyes was half-closed, drooping from the left side. 'This spell works on even the strongest living creatures. Use the Talisman, Demonlord. Why hold back? I've seen what the Talisman did to my face. Why have you shown mercy? It doesn't suit you… Gorowrath.'

'Stop provoking him!' June yelled weakly. She had fallen flat on her back, hurting her spine. Wait… what did he just call him? Realisation hit her like a bullet, and suddenly her back didn't feel so painful. That name… is ironically hard to forget. Even as she sat there, stunned, her temples let out a sudden pulse of pain. The Talisman engulfed her vision. Red. purple. Aquamarine. Red. Purple. Aquamarine. It was only a few yards away, small and uninteresting. But in her vision, it was blooming with red, purple, and aquamarine flames. Vivid, intimidating, eager for its power to be unleashed. Yet, amidst all the chaos, the Talisman of Wisdom seemed impossibly small in the chamber. A small, grey cube.

'Gorowrath?' Demonlord rehearsed. 'What are you talking about, hermit?'

'You… blew… a… hole… in the floor,' Ozin said with some struggle. 'Not… even… Alister… can… do… that…'

'Alister? Is that the head of your council?' Demonlord laughed, suddenly submerged in deep thinking. For a moment, his chilling aura disappeared and was replaced by a child's curiosity. 'You're saying I'm Gorowrath?' He didn't even care about June crawling away from him or constant blood pouring from his tail stump.

'Good job, you caught up to speed,' Ozin said sarcastically, clearly burnt out. 'Only him—could reckon against physics like that. No others—not even hermits—can imitate the techniques of his attacks.'

'Explain yourself, hermit,' Demonlord said coldly. 'Do this right, and I might not kill you immediately. So that you know, your dissipate sphere attack couldn't have stopped me from killing that German girl. I want you to understand that. Now tell me – what do I have to do with Gorowrath?'

'Each Talisman has their own will,' said Ozin. 'They're attached to specific people. People who had left a deep mark in their memories carved into their symbols—and their destinies. So, in this case—Gorowrath. Or you.

'I've suspected Gorowrath left a part of his soul to attach to somebody, to overlook the day someone becomes the successor of his creation.

'You can imitate Gorowrath's moves because of that very same reason. I suspected that Gorowrath used corrupted sorcery to imbue his soul into somebody else after he died. He has a piece of his DNA inside your veins,' Ozin finished grimly. 'And that's why the Talisman of Wisdom ended up here.'

'So does that make me his successor?' Demonlord wasn't even trying to hide his glee. His eyes were wider than golf balls. 'I'm the rightful owner of the Talisman?'

A smile crept onto Ozin's face. Relief?

'Not quite. You're not,' said Ozin. Demonlord's smile faded. 'Didn't you hear me? You're only imbued with a fraction of his soul, so naturally, you could control the Talisman. However, Gorowrath had other intentions with this remaining piece of soul.'

'What does that mean?'

Osen swallowed with a hint of annoyance, 'He wanted to observe, through your eyes, over this mountain. He must have known that one day, both the Talisman and his successor would end up together in this mountain, where fungi blooms. That means you're not the successor.'

That means you're not the successor.

'Then who could it be?' Demonlord trembled with disbelief. 'Who could it be then, you liar? I'll kill them!'

'Someone who'd never met the Talisman before. And that person is chosen by the Talisman itself, not Gorowrath. Someone who, the Talisman believes could control it at will. Gorowrath cast his soul into pure magic because he longed so much to see the successor of his creation. Of course, there were two of them, so the other must have already found its rightful owner.' 

The Talisman suddenly vibrated violently on its pedestal beside the stone throne. A blue, mystical light radiated from its core. Suddenly, lightning shot from it in every direction, melting everything it touched. The whole chamber tremored.

'I can control it with free will,' Demonlord snarled. 'You're just trying to convince me to hand it over!'

'No, I'm not,' Ozin was calm. 'The fact that Gorowrath chose you to spectate means he knew that his successor would be anyone but you. Do you still not get it? Are you that stupid? You can use the Talisman because he could use the Talisman. You've kept it because he'd  kept it. The Talisman recognises a familiar face inside you, that's all. But it'll eventually follow the successor after they meet. After that, the Talisman will wrestle away the control that you had on it. The chosen person could conjure its true power with their heart.'

'And who is this successor? You seem to understand a lot, including who they are,' demanded Demonlord. 'I know you'd know, so speak up! Before I roast the Talisman's successor in this room with its own powers!' He drooled maniacally, lighting his fingers on fire. The chamber shook again. 'Don't worry! I want to see the successor awaken the Talisman with their own hands! Come on out! I'll kill you!'

'JUNE!' Ozin screamed louder than he'd ever screamed in his life. 'YOU FREED ME, SO I SAVED YOU! NOW USE THE GODDAMN TALISMAN AND SAVE US ALL!'

'What?' she cried in dismay. 'You mean… you mean…!'

'Come on. Do it, little girl!' Demonlord whispered, sending shivers down her spine. 'I want to see this myself, not just Gorowrath inside me! I will kill you with my own hands, opposing the Talisman's power! Dance with me! Dance with the blue flames and destruction! Dance like there's no tomorrow!'

June looked around the chamber in disbelief. Her vision swam. On the other side of the room, Ozin was rooting for her so much that she almost thought this was a joke. Maxy stared at her in awe, like she was hiding her identity this whole time. I didn't even know. How could I be so rigid? She sank her face into her hands, trembling in terror. Ozin was looking serene, back on the Tower of Oblivion. He must have known at that moment. My blood had resonated with the moon, and the Talisman had received it. 'Synph is like idling magic,' Ozin explained to me, thinking that I knew. It all makes sense now why I had constant migraines from the Talisman's influence, whisperings in my ears that guided me up to this point; amethyst crystals have magical properties, so demons could touch them while mortals can't without getting burnt, but my synph had somehow neglected its magic, like an electrical charge—so I got shocked; She curled her hands into fists, looking at them with fear.

'I… I…' she stuttered. 'I… I can't… I can't be! I can't! I can't beat him!'

'Yes, you can!' Ozin retorted, seeing her break down. 'Grab a hold of the Talisman! See what happens!'

'Yeah, girl! Don't keep everyone waiting,' Demonlord mocked. 'Show me what you're capable of, and then we'll fight to the death.'

June forced her feet to drive her towards the Talisman, but the closer she got, the harder it was to advance. What if they're wrong? She shuddered. What if nothing happens when I touch it? Would Demonlord kill us all?

Her hand locked onto the Talisman's surface for the first time. She heard her heart thump inside her chest, and sweat popped from her fingers. She tightened her grip on the irritatingly smooth surface. The Talisman felt cold against her hand, yet she could sense the unlimited amount of burning energy inside it, waiting to be released into the realm of living. It was quite an intense moment. Either the Talisman works for me, or we all die. She realised. She felt faint. For once, everyone's life depends on me. I don't have an excuse to fail.

Maxy watched in the distance, not realising she was holding her breath. Demonlord could be sending another wave of pain at her right now, but even he—the villain—was hooked by June, who stood there like a stone statue. Slowly, she turned around to face her friends and the enemy. To their surprise, she was holding it, and mesmerising blue flames engulfed the hand that was holding the Talisman. Her bright green eyes looked sad and regretful.

'Nothing's happening,' she whispered and broke into a sob.