Demon Lord

Ellese sighed and looked up from her scrying glass to smile at Tallis, who hovered at her elbow. “She is all right, Tallis, stop worrying.”

  Tallis forced a wan smile. “What has happened?”

  “She has won a great victory, my dear. A very great one.”

  “Tell me.” Tallis pulled up a stool, her mien eager.

  “He saved her from the brink of death, after he defeated the Earl of Timon’s army. The Earl is dead I am afraid, poor, foolish man. Mirra used the power we sent her to heal the wounded men of Bane’s army, as she must, of course.”

  “But they are the enemy.”

  Ellese wagged a finger. “They are just men, misguided, but no less deserving of healing than anyone else. Could you deny it to a suffering man, no matter who he might be? We do not judge their worthiness. That is for the Lady to do.”

  “We denied good people healing to gather that power.”

  The seeress sighed. “I know, but none of them were dying, as the men Mirra healed were. Anyway, another demon attacked her, but Bane saved her. She has him now.”

  “What do you mean, ‘has him’?”

  Ellese smiled. “He does not know it yet, but he is starting to care for her.”

  “The Demon Lord?”

  “Yes, my dear, a very human young man, and confused, I should imagine, right now. He has never known love, Tallis. Can you imagine what that must be like? He does not understand what is happening to him, but he does not like it.”

  “What will happen to Mirra?”

  “I cannot say. The Black Lord will do everything in his power to turn Bane to his will, but we hope he will fail. Bane holds the key to his release, so he will have to be careful of what he does. Right now, Bane thinks he wants Mirra dead as much as the Black Lord does, but of course, he does not. She is in great danger now. The Black Lord will try harder than ever to kill her, and Bane must protect her. It pits the two against each other, but they are equally powerful. Mirra must persuade him to stop breaking the wards, but that will be difficult. She has not won his trust.”

  Tallis shook her head. “He cares for her, but he does not trust her?”

  “Yes. Love is a strange thing, my dear. The most powerful force of good in the world, but the most misunderstood and mysterious. The goddess gave us the one weapon that will work against Bane, for his only weakness is that he is human.”