A Demon in the Dark Read Free

Marcus. “I know you. You are no traitor to demonkind.” He circled Marcus like a predator ready to strike. “You are traitor to me . You sought to ruin my reputation and seize my glory so that you might depose me. You would have had all demonkind believe that I myself put a Christian emperor in power.” Xeres bellowed, a violent roar that resonated through the trees. Both he and Marcus were robust and powerful, but Marcus remained silent and submissive while Xeres raged. “This will not stand! Your crime goes far beyond a petty play for power. You have shamed all of us here and threatened the future of our ilk. You will pay for your lunacy. Oh, you will pay.”
    Once Balthior’s innocence had been firmly established, he was freed. Marcus was held prisoner while a cluster of demons was dispatched to Constantine. Xeres claimed that if the Augustus could be put back to sleep, he could administer another vision to Constantine and undo the damage Marcus had done. Word soon returned, however, that Constantine had declared a vigil; he would not sleep until the battle was done. Apparently, God had told him to do so in the vision. This enraged Xeres further, but rage would not salvage his plans, so he called an assemblage to debate a course of action. Balthior stayed to watch, drawn by the possibility of earning glory and prestige in the unfolding events.
    As he waited for the meeting to begin, some lesser demons approached Balthior and asked for his version of tonight’s story. Balthior could scarcely remember how it felt to be so admired. Demons more reputable than himself often swatted him away from human prey in the city, but he was otherwise a stranger to attention from his peers, at least in the recent past. These dupes would follow me , the Rat. For no other reason than my association with Marcus. How joyous. Balthior absorbed himself in retelling his tale, and the others flattered him, eager for attention of their own. They left him, though, when Xeres’s assemblage began. Marcus, haggard and beaten, was escorted into the area for the sake of any questions that might be asked of him. Balthior listened as the demon leaders argued. In the brightening sky to the east, the Morning Star was rising before the sun.
    “Maxentius should be emperor now,” one demon lord said. “His men outnumber Constantine’s. We should assist them in the battle. There is no choice but to let Constantine be slain.”
    “Nay,” Xeres replied in his impossibly deep voice. “Your solution would be but temporary. The people hate Maxentius. If Constantine’s army does not kill him, someone else surely will, and soon.”
    “And so? It is no matter. With both Augusti dead, other claimants will emerge, and the infighting will lead to more battles, elongating this civil war all the further. It is a good plan.”
    “An unpredictable plan.” Om interrupted in Xeres’s defense. “We will have no control over the eventual victor. He could be a peaceful man, or a Christian. What good is three more months of war if our cause is smothered for decades to come?”
    From the place where he was bound by four other demons, Marcus spoke, his voice just a whisper next to Om’s and Xeres’s. “My esteemed friends. Your cause is not lost. Let me help you with—”
    “Silence!” Om yelled.
    “Nay, let him speak.” Xeres moved closer to his former right hand. “What was your plan, betrayer? What would you have done with a Christian emperor once you had deposed me?”
    “I would have killed him. The plan is already set to make him supreme ruler, so you should let him win his war. But at the same time, gradually instill hatred for him in the hearts of his men. If Constantine espouses Christianity and tries to spread it, coax one of them into assassinating him and usurping his position.”
    “As you intended to usurp mine?” Xeres said coldly.
    “I will help you kill Constantine to earn back my keep, if you allow it.”
    Xeres frowned. “The