The green eyes observed Kirin with the cold amusement of a wildcat toying with its prey. The smiling mouth came so close that, for a mad moment, he thought the demon would kiss him. His whole body stiffened, but the lips passed his own without touching, and a coaxing voice whispered in his ear.
"Use your head, little bird."
Kirin had no strength or breath left to protest. The weight shifted as the demon rose in one graceful move.
Burned, beaten and bruised, the bard stared at the tall figure bathed in the last rays of sunset. The stranger was looking at him with the same expectant expression the High Warlock wore when he expected him to solve a problem on his own.
Kirin wholeheartedly wished the old man were here, but at least that look was something he recognised. It helped him push through the fear and order his thoughts.
The fires had already been dying when he returned, so the attack must have happened while he was still in the cave. More importantly, this being had still been in the Otherworld at the time. So this massacre was someone else's doing.
But why had this man followed him from the cave? To punish him? He had overpowered and mocked him, and yet still let him live.
Gods coming down to earth to test the mortals. Wasn't that what he had asked for?
Kirin glared at the darkening sky and muttered, "If this is one of your divine lessons to teach me to be careful what I wish for, you can stuff it where the sun doesn't shine."
"I think your gods might be the vengeful sort," the amused voice above him commented.
Unwilling to look at him, Kirin turned his head, only to freeze in place when he found himself face-to-face with a coiling, hissing adder. An armoured hand appeared in his sight and grabbed the snake, carelessly throwing it towards the trees.
"Get up, you young fool. It is a complete mystery to me how you managed to survive so far," the demon snarled.
Kirin just huffed and remained where he was. If this was his punishment, it shouldn't have involved those innocent men. His hands burrowed into the earth as if reaching for the dead miners.
"That adder only came out because you upturned the soil when you let the earth swallow those men like they were rotting waste," he said.
The man squatted next to him. "Isn't that what you do with your dead? Bury them in the ground?"
"Yes, but with proper prayers and rituals. The way you disposed of them, their families would not even have a chance to find out what happened to them!"
The man scoffed. "And you think it would have been a mercy for them to have to puzzle the bodies back together?"
"Even that is better than spending your life wondering why they just left you. At least they would know."
A strange expression crossed the man's face. He rose and lifted his left hand.
"Fine. I'll dig them up again."
Kirin shot up and grabbed the demon's arm to stop him, then realised that there was no golden magic coming from it. The bastard had just tricked him into getting up.
The stranger looked pointedly at the soiled hands clutching the sleeve of his pristine white tunic. Kirin felt his ears heat up and let go.
"What kind of bard are you that you can't use your words instead of throwing yourself at me like a mad bird?" the demon asked, brushing his sleeve.
"What kind of god are you that you would threaten to desecrate the dead?" Kirin snapped back.
The corners of the man's mouth curled slightly. "I know nothing of your gods. But if they waste their time arguing with stubborn fools in burning ruins, I suggest you find new ones."
"What are you, then? No witch I've ever seen has powers like yours."
For the first time, a genuine smile softened the perfect features, making them look almost human.
"Why don't you use your little glow to find out?"
Kirin hesitated. He had already been hit by so much strange magic today that he wasn't sure how much more he could endure. Still, he would have rather died than admit to more weakness in front of this arrogant bastard.
He let his Seeker energies envelop the tall figure. The first thing he sensed was the same alluring warmth he had felt through the wall. Beneath it, however, lay the blaze of destruction, contained by something steady and unmovable as a mountain. He had only felt such vast power in old sacred places, but never in a person. It was as if nature itself had come alive and formed a body to move in.
He opened his mouth to say that, but the bastard looked too smug. He wasn't going to give him the satisfaction, so he just said, "This doesn't tell me what you are. Only that you are not human."
Amusement flickered in the demon's eyes, and even something like recognition.
"Can you tell if there are others like me around?"
Kirin tried not to flinch. What if the ones who had come before him were close by as well? A horrible suspicion came to him.
Summoning his last strength, he let his energies roam. The highest concentration of similar power was a mile to the north. It felt lighter, more agile than the one contained in the demon, but no less dangerous.
The bastard had turned to follow the glow of his magic, and the smug smile widened.
"Well done. Can you tell what kind of magic it is?"
"It feels like a storm on an island, so maybe wind or water, or both. It is too far to say exactly. But it is all concentrated in one person," Kirin replied tiredly.
He hid his shaking hands in the fold of his cloak.
"And how far can this glow go?"
"It depends on how strong the source of magic it follows is."
He wasn't foolish enough to add that if he let it go too far, it would drain his body to the point of collapse. It seemed this creature needed him for something and could still kill him if he decided Kirin wasn't useful enough. Better to buy some time. He could hold on just a little longer.
"So what will you do?" the demon asked.
"Do I have a choice?" Kirin retorted.
"Yes. You can either help me find those who slaughtered your people, or go back to lingering in mouldy caves and trying to find a rhyme for silver."
The bard narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "Why would someone like you care about simple miners?"
"I don't. But as it happens, we have the same goal."
Kirin focused on the thick silver bracers on the demon's wrists. His vision was already blurred from exhaustion.
"Men and women in silver armour and soldiers in grey capes came out of that cave two days ago. Are they the ones who killed my friends?" he asked, finally admitting his worst fear.
"That was not silver, but the rest sounds about right."
"But… it was my fault that they came. I asked for… for…"
Kirin realised he was rambling. He shouldn't have used so much energy. His eyes closed against his will, and his legs became unsteady.
"You give yourself too much credit, little bird."
The voice was too close and almost kind. Kirin knew he had to be hallucinating. The strangely comforting scent of spring meadows filled his head. He leaned into it, tears rushing to his dry eyes.
"But I asked for him. The golden one… I thought he was a hero of legend."
Both words and thoughts slipped away. The last thing he heard before the darkness closed in was a low murmur:
"So did I."