RE: Monarch
Chapter 15. Everwood X

My rampant abuse of the vurseng continued. There was simply too much to accomplish and not enough time. My vision started to haze around the edges, and in particularly quiet moments I could hear voices. Small whispers of doubt and anxiety. I would need to sleep before the end, but for the moment, it was a luxury I could not afford.

I set out early in the morning, hauling the massive quantity of sleep agent we gathered and dumped it into the small creek I saw the demon drinking from on that day that now felt like ages ago. My intent was to sideline the monstrosity entirely, though that was a thin hope at best.

The date was set. Tomorrow at dawn. Maya helped me weave rope together into nets and sharpen stakes. We fashioned Maya a stave with a point at the end. I knew nothing about the construction of weapons, but she seemed pleased with the balance of it, spinning it in a practiced arc. We hid all our supplies deep within the Everwood.

From across the river, I gathered the sole patch of priceless laudenshade (the one that just kills you) I saw on that first day when Barion had sent me to the river, and mixed it with a paralytic, coating my blade. My sword wasn’t going to do much on its own. It was still barely more than a toothpick, it was the poison I was counting on.

That night, the vurseng finally left my system. I sat on the floor, utterly spent. My head kept nodding forward involuntarily, sleep nearly taking me before I snapped back awake. I ran through it in my mind, over and over again. Was I missing anything? Surely I was missing something?

But the vurseng had taken its toll. It hurt to think. Maya slipped into the room with a tray of tea, nearly dropping it when she saw me.

"Ni’lend," she hissed, slamming the tray on the floor with a clatter and rushing to my side.

"It's fine." I mumbled drunkenly.

"It is not fine. You told me you had been sleeping."

"I’m a liar," I said deliriously, "A dirty liar who lies."

"You need to rest." Her hands lifted at me. I brushed them away.

"What if we forgot something, Maya?" I asked. My voice warbled in my ears. The stress rolled down the back of my neck in prickling, radiating waves. "What if it costs us everything?" My breath came in short gasps, each smaller than the last.

"I am going to touch your mind again." Maya said after a moment of silence. It wasn’t a question. "If you do not want this, speak now."

I said nothing. Maya looked into my eyes and her hand glowed. Her hand touched the back of my neck. She breathed out, and I breathed out with her. In, then out again. The ball of stress and panic unraveled slowly, still there, just no longer overwhelming. The glow faded.

"My debt to you grows," I smiled ruefully.

Maya helped me to my feet, guiding me to the bed.

I awoke at the crack of dawn, anxiety and anticipation crawling in my gut. This room, this house, would no longer be my prison after today. I didn’t let myself consider the possibility of another reset. This needed to end. My senses all felt sharper and more vibrant. The crisp cool air chilled me and the sounds of the forest called. I strapped on my sword and laced my boots. Mentally, I reminded myself that the poison on my blade would only be good for the next few hours.

Maya waited at the door, fully dressed, her face set and determined. As much as I wanted this over, I could only imagine the feeling for her was a hundredfold.

"Sleep well, Ni’lend?"

"Thanks to you."

She opened the door and we were off.

First, we strung the chains and snapped the cellar padlock shut. The chains themselves were heavy and frigid to the touch. With any luck, Barion would not realize he had been locked in for a while. We retrieved the stockpile of weapons, then began the second phase: placing all manner of tinder and wood within the entrance of the demon’s cave. The wood had all been doused in rosewater so it would burn longer without burning out completely. We had chopped much of it over the last few days and piled it high, nearly reaching the top. Maya was confident the thing was nocturnal, and, unless called upon, would remain fast asleep until the late evening. If it worked perfectly and the cave didn't have a back entrance—unfortunately there had been no safe way to check—the fire would work as a barrier, hopefully killing the thing from smoke inhalation. At the very least, the barrier of demon-fire would at least keep it back until we dealt with Barion.

"They are immune to it, but that does not mean they do not fear it." Maya had said. "For them it represents a true death, something that they rarely face."

I lit the kindling aflame. We waited for a few seconds, to see if our actions had immediately roused the demon.

Nothing.

Excellent. That meant the sleeping mixture had done its job.

"Ready to run?" I asked her.

"Yes."

"Go."

Maya took off back towards the clearing.

Then came the second phase. With a dark, twisted satisfaction, I reached out, a spark held before me.

And within seconds, the forest was on fire. The flame spread quickly from tree to tree. The temperature rose to positively sweltering. I took some extra time to set several trees around the cave on fire, but by the time I’d come full circle it seemed mostly unnecessary: the fire leapt from tree to tree like a beast with a mind of its own. The edge of my robe started smoking. I had doused it in rosewater, but it seemed the rosewater only went so far. I began feeling light-headed from all the smoke and decided it was time to leave. Hopefully, this would be enough.

Stay in your cave, you bastard.

By the time I got back to the clearing, holding the spark out to light trees as I ran, I was dizzy and lightheaded. Anything that followed me would be much worse for wear. Maya held her spear and stood next to the cellar. It shook in her hands.

"Here he comes," she whispered. As if in response, the cellar door bashed outwards, the chains rattling. I saw a flash of something between the doors. A fiery red eye that didn’t look anything like the Barion I knew.

"What the hells is he?" I hissed.

"I do not know. Only that he is very old. But this strength… is inhuman," Maya answered. I held my sword out, bracing myself for the explosion of violence once Barion broke the chains. But Barion did not break out. The chains seemed to hold. Maya went to grab the nets. For a moment, I thought everything might go to plan.

We would kill Barion, and once he died, any pact he held with the demon would be absolved.

Then there was an angry roar, and the demon-elk exploded into the clearing. Bits of flame and smoke clung to its transparent skin before burning out, its previously glossy skin covered in ash. It looked from side to side wildly before its eyes locked on us. It raised its head and let loose that horrifying wraith-like howl. The thing that was once Barion continued bashing at the door.

"Oh no," Maya whispered.

"Okay. Okay. Go to plan three," I yelled.

"Got it." Maya ran to the side, distancing herself from me and the cellar, making herself a smaller target.

I unsheathed my sword. Every fiber of my being rebelled, screaming at me to run away. But I stayed firm. The demon staggered towards me, its movements awkward and wooden, still under the effects of the sleeping agent.

"Round two, motherfucker," I whispered. The terror pressed down on me. I could see it in my mind's eye, those horrible blunt teeth, rending my flesh.

At first, I could only take a single step.

Then another.

And another.

Then I was running, my sword held high, its small blade catching the light of the dawn, pure and raging. The demon picked up speed, the ground shaking as its massive hooves struck the ground. Moments before we clashed, it lowered its head, attempting to gore me with its antlers.

But I’d been expecting that. I crouched down and jumped to the side with the blow, managing to grab the protruding bone. My stomach flipped as I was yanked from the ground. A single black eye regarded me with rage. The elk shook its head violently and I felt my fingers slipping. I nearly panicked and dropped my sword to get a better grip.

Think.

The demon was interminably strong, but disoriented and weakened from the poisoned water supply. It moved inconsistently. Incredible bursts of strength and speed, followed by a second of muddled confusion. I waited until the creature slowed, then with a quick thrust of my hips, swung my legs up and locked them around the horn. From there I easily regained my grip. With my other hand, I flipped the blade upside down. And with all my strength, thrust it into the demon's eye.

It screamed that ethereal howl, and the hearing in my right ear faded into a dull roar. It snapped at me wildly, its teeth cracking together in a series of savage snaps. Then my whole body was falling. The horn I clung to slammed me against the ground and I felt something snap in my chest. I gasped out for breath, each inhale wet and painful.

Why was the laudenshade not working? It should have been unconscious by now, approaching total organ failure. Instead, it towered above me and bent down. Its mouth opened and it clamped onto my arm.

Was this it? The end of the line, again?

I was terrified, yes. But there was something greater than the fear.

Rage.

The thing was so damn stupid. It could have killed me in one bite, but instead it wanted to drag things out yet again. It was so stupid and petty and vile. The rage flamed up from within me. I grabbed it across its snout with my other hand, and, using the arm still held in its mouth as leverage, coiled my entire body and kicked its remaining eye. Something slimy and wet gave way beneath my foot. It dropped my arm and screamed.

Maya flew. Her pointed stave struck the ground, and she vaulted upwards. Her hands glowed green as she took flight like a valkyrie, the sun emerging from the clouds behind her. Her face twisted into a feral snarl. She landed hard on the demon’s back, the claws of her hands digging rivets into its translucent skin.

The demon’s howl modulated upward an octave. I watched in sickened awe, as one by one, the colorful sacs and roping entrails within the demon burst in an explosion of crimson. Within seconds, its translucent body shifted opaque, nothing visible but a deep red tint. It spasmed on its feet, sending Maya tumbling off the side. She landed badly, her ankle twisting, and crumpled with a cry of pain. The demon’s massive body slammed to the ground, raising a fog of dirt into the air. The surrounding smoke was getting thicker. I staggered to her, fighting through the agony in my chest.

In the distance, the sound of the cellar door was punctuated by the clatter of a chain coming free.

Maya tried to stand twice, before falling to her knees. "I thought we would have more time. I messed up, Cairn," she whispered.

"No. You did everything right."

She was about to try and stand again when I held her back and shook my head.

"But the plan." Maya wept, her voice raw. "The poison is gone."

I patted her on the head, projecting a confidence I didn’t feel. "There’s always another plan." But there wasn’t, really. Just a hunch and a hope. A hunch I’d bet the forest on. A sudden explosion of sound echoed out across the clearing, of iron tearing and chain shattering. My heart pounded. My left arm hung useless. I wrenched my sword from the eye of the demon and returned, pulling my final trick, the last contingency, out of my coat—a glass vial. I took a rag and dampened it with the tincture, coating my sword with it.

The thing that was once Barion emerged from the smoke. He was taller than before, and seemed to glide rather than walk, lifted by dark tendrils of shadow that elevated him beneath his robe.

"How long has it been since I have been challenged?" He watched me, as if seeing me for the first time. "I owe you an apology, my friend. It seems I underestimated you." Barion turned in a full circle, taking in the chaos and carnage, gaze falling on Maya and the fallen demon.

"You." Barion hissed.

"Leave her be. I did this." I took a step forward.

"Not without help, you didn’t." Barion chuckled then, low and menacing. "Live as long as I have, child, and you will replace fewer and fewer surprises. They become priceless gems, invaluable glimmers in the darkness that forms the cave of your existence." He smiled without a hint of warmth. "Today, I am surprised indeed. Since you have shown me such a precious gift, I will make you a deal." He had moved closer, though much to my alarm I hadn’t actually seen the movement.

Barion reached into his robe and I tensed. He withdrew his hand and tossed something before me. The compass landed face up.

"If you follow that east it will take you back to the road. On my honor, I will not pursue you. All you need to do is leave me the girl. We have accounts to settle, she and I."

"He’s telling the truth, Cairn," Maya said weakly behind me. "Once he gives his word he holds to it—it’s why he rarely does." Then, after a quiet moment. "Whatever he is, he’s powerful. I can sense it. You should go. You can’t beat him. It won’t work."

I closed my eyes then. At the beginning of all of this, I would have taken such an offer in a heartbeat. I hadn’t owed her anything back then. The image of Annette’s unrecognizably burned body still haunted my every dream. So much had changed between then and now. Maya, pulling me from the darkness. Maya holding me as I cried, the one link tethering me from madness. Maya healing the tormented children in the basement, over and over, undoubtedly knowing how pointless it all was. Maya packing me supplies for my escape and stalling, something that cost her life in the end.

It finally clicked in my mind, the struggle vanquished. Maya was no longer the monster who burned my sister alive. Just as I was no longer the same person who ran, terrified, into the Everwood.

It didn’t matter how many times it took.

How much it cost.

I had to do this. I quieted my mind, set my jaw, and opened my eyes.

Barion cocked his head at me. His entire body was overtaken by shadow until only his mouth remained. It spoke, an otherworldly quality overtaking the voice.

"You should have taken my offer.”