Barlowe, Wayne - God's Demon

The caravan threaded its way up toward the palace itself. The huge souls, spurred on by their cudgel-wielding mahouts, were burdened down with Abyssal hides, rolls of soul-vellum, and other luxury products from the remote towns of the Wastes. Palace bound, Hani suspected. He needed to actually enter the palace before separating from them and hoped he was right about their destination.

When they passed through the threshold, plodded to a halt in the great entry hall, and began unstrapping the cargo, Hani felt a mixture of satisfaction, relief, and then apprehension. He was inside Sargatanas' palace! Hani was surprised at the feel of its interior; he had been prepared for something much darker, more oppressive. Instead, its bustling interior, brightly illuminated by fluorescing minerals set in sconces, conveyed a sense only of purposeful power, infernal bureaucracy untainted by true evil. Despite the building's outwardly benign atmosphere, he knew that the hardest part of his journey still lay ahead; his goal to kneel before the feet of Lord Sargatanas might truly be impossible. Hani reached for a huge bundle of dark-scaled hides, and, hefting it up with some difficulty, he began to follow a string of souls who seemed to be heading deep into the building. An Overseer glanced at Hani, his wary, reflective eyes probing deeply but apparently finding nothing unusual. With a flick of the demon's whip and the touch of it still stinging Hani's back, he moved on, walking through a succession of long corridors until, in the distance, he saw a high, curving wall, its tiled surface broken at long, regular intervals by tall, column-framed entrances. Beyond them, he suspected, was the audience hall, but what lay between remained a mystery. Quite soon, he was going to have to break away from the workers and the security of numbers they afforded. As careful as he was, he could not help but wonder how far he could get before inevitably being spotted.

DIS

Lilith awoke to a quiet knock upon her broken door. She waited in the darkness, hoping she had only dreamt the sound, but when it came again she slowly went to the door and paused. She was emotionally exhausted; the idea of another encounter with Beelzebub and the resulting struggle was enough to make her numb. But something within told her that the knock had not come from one of the Order Knights; it had not been forceful enough.

"Consort, please open the door," came the voice from the corridor. "It is I, Agares."

"So the Prince is now using his Prime Minister to fetch his plaything? You must be proud of your new position."

"You misunderstand, Consort. Open the door, at least, so that we can talk."

She knew that if he was not alone the door would not keep them from her. With a shrug she opened the door, expecting it to burst inward with the weight of Agares' accomplices.

The Prime Minister, Lilith saw, was alone. He entered, bowed, and, closing the door behind him, stood back. In his arms was a bundle of clothes.

"I have come to get you out of here," he said with quiet urgency.

"Why?"

"Because the Prince grows tired of you. And I will not be able to serve him with you up there ... up above the throne."

Lilith looked at him with some disdain. "So this is about you, then? You would not be happy with me dangling above you for eternity, looking down upon you, as I most assuredly would."

"I am sorry, Consort; that was not quite how I meant it. Yes, I would be disturbed. But to survive I must be able to serve him without any ... ah, impediment. And while I have no love for the Prince or his ways, I do recognize him as our regent pro tem. Until, that is, Lucifer should ever return."

Lilith turned from him. "The hope still burns, eh?"

"Yes, Consort, it does."

"And, perhaps, if he does return ... and I do survive, why then, whoever was instrumental in my survival ... ," she said. She nodded, smiling faintly. "I think I understand."

Agares held out the traveling skins.

"I will tell the Prince, when he next summons you, that you are ill, that you have asked not to be disturbed. Given his feelings toward you, at the moment, I think he will welcome that. For a while, at least. I have arranged for a caravan to escort you—incognito of course—to virtually anywhere in Hell that you choose. Your destination is your own affair and how you dispose of the demons of the caravan, too, is your own business; I do not want to know. That is my parting gift to you; if I should be found out to have helped you escape ... well, I will not be able to betray you at my ... last moments."

"Very noble. I will try to remember that, if Lucifer should ever return."

"Thank you."

Lilith took the heavy, hooded garments that smelled faintly of smoke. Agares turned to leave.

"Just one thing, Prime Minister," she said. "How did you know that I would not tell the Prince of your betrayal?"