POV: TRAIDEN

  From the top of the stairs, I watch the setting sun and the few groups of people slowly disappearing. ‘75 years have already passed, and soon we’ll see if that dredge survived, what do you think, Airen?’ I ask in my mind, directing it to the smoke hidden in my purse, it barely responds with only hints of apathy, not in words, but its apathy is clear in my mind. Ignoring the demon, I turn to see the second most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen, Cassandra Redwood. “Traiden Cliffs, it's good to see you well. My husband is waiting for you in his study.” Cassandra said while curtsying, and I bowed my head slightly to her, placing my hand on my heart.

  “It's good to see you as well, Lady Redwood. I hope I haven’t kept your family waiting for too long.” I responded as I held back a sigh. ‘These petty manners are so annoying, can’t we just hug each other and talk more easily, but no, we risk lowering ourselves in the eyes of the lessers.’ I complained in my mind, but as I raised my head, I saw the knowing look in Cassandra’s eyes; she easily saw what I was thinking.

  “Follow me, Cliffs.” Cassandra said as she turned around, leading me into the castle, slightly amused. I follow behind while being followed by a few guards, an unnecessary action, but the lessers had low or even suspicious opinions of his family, so such overt actions were needed so they won’t think the same for the Redwoods.

  Airen flew out of my purse, exploring the hallway with no one the wiser, being invisible to all eyes except other demons and mine. ‘You won’t find anything of note here, the cult has been pushed back to the shores of the island.’ I tell the mist, guessing why it suddenly left my purse. It ignored me and glided around the entire castle by the time I entered Leaden’s study.

  “You leave us now. Traiden, please have a seat.” Leaden said to the guards before looking at me with bags under his eyes. His desk was covered with scrolls of papyrus with scribbles that looked like abyssal writing.

  ‘Any of these scrolls infused with power?’ I asked Airen and got a no in response. I let out a breath as I took a seat on a couch across from the desk while the guards left the room, but Cassandra.

  “Dear, I believe I should be here also.” She says it in a neutral tone, but the look in her eyes shows that Leaden didn’t have a choice. Leaden lets out a sigh as I hold back a chuckle.

  “Cas we talked about this,” Leaden said with his hand rubbing his forehead, but Cassandra just sat down on the other couch across from the desk.

  “We did, but never agreed,” Cassandra said with the same neutral tone, and Leaden just sighed even more.

  This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

  “Just give up, Leaden, you know you’ll never convince her, and I have no problem letting her learn some of my family secrets,” I say with a smile, getting a smile back from Cassandra and Leaden sitting back in their chair.

  “Thank you Traiden, now this is all we got from those damn cultists,” Leaden said looking at the scrolls, unable to understand what he was looking at. Airen is already reading it all, being the only thing on the island that could properly read Abyssal. “Do you understand what it says? It just looks like scribbles along lines.” Leaden asks as I get up, looking over the scrolls, and I just shrug my shoulders.

  “It’s not a good idea to learn Abyssal, but I think I get the gist of it. What about the weapons that were found?” I ask as I try to focus despite Airen sending visions and emotions that the writing invoked.

  “They are in the basement for containment, like you told us, but they don’t seem that special to me.”

  “You wouldn’t know if they had power until they made you kill your own family, but you are right, they have no power, my demon already checked,” I respond to Leaden as I try to ignore the mist demon’s constant pulling at my mind.

  “When did that happen?” Cassandra asks with a tinge of fear in her voice.

  “The moment you let me in, people can’t see certain demons unless they want you, and my demon hates being seen,” I tell her, knowing that my words brought her no comfort.

  “Then we should destroy all of this, right?” Leaden asks, trying to change the subject and ignoring the potential threat that the mist demon was.

  “The scrolls, yes, once I understand them, but the weapons should be safe. Use them as you see fit; they have been normal weapons before your people got to them.” I say as I roll up the scrolls so Leaden would stop trying to understand the writing.

  “What do you mean they are normal when we got them?” Cassandra asks me as I take my seat again, despite the growing headache because of Airen, I smile at her.

  “It just means that something took the power from those weapons back to the abyss, probably our dredge succeeding in its contract.” I say as I try to focus on her and ignore Airen.

  “The same dredge that took my son’s hand?”

  ‘Fuck.’ Despite Cassandra smiling at me, I could see the resentment in her eyes.

  “Cas-” Leaden sighs out before getting cut off.

  “What do you plan to do with it now that the 7 years are up, Cliffs?” Cassandra asks. Letting out a sigh before looking into her eyes and seeing the hate festering inside of her.

  “I plan to make another deal with it,” I say simply, knowing that this conversation had to be done eventually, the only reason it wasn’t done before was because Leaden and I had made the deal with the demon before she even knew what was going on.

  “Why? It crippled my son, your nephew.” Cassandra asked, barely holding back her anger.

  “For the same reason, you don’t melt down a sword that was used against yourself, so you may use it against your enemies.”

  “It isn’t a sword but a thinking and living thing that chose to maim a child.”

  “You are giving it too much credit. It is less than even an animal. They only mimic life, they don’t even see the world the same way we do. They are tools to be used and hazards that must be watched.”

  “Oh, you sound so much like your father, and what will you trade away for this thing’s assistance? The souls of others? Do you want us to let you trade away souls so you can watch it?”

  “If it were up to my father, then I would leave and let this cult burn down your family. If I can use a native of this land’s abyss to snuff out those flames and keep the rest of you safe then I would gladly let it feast on the souls of those same damn cultists. It is the best way to make sure that no more demons of the flame reach your home. I have no other way to stop them, I-” I stop as Airen warns me of an eavesdropper. “Come in, boy, this deals with you too,” I say out loud to the curious boy with a missing hand beyond the door.