Split of the Worlds

Chapter 6.4

So that was it. Her scent made her so prominent. Veidja knew what the demonlord had actually wanted to tell her, but for a moment she was just glad to have to deal with him solely. No other demons, no other impressions. Just the blur of activity outside the alcove.

She was still reeling from her encounter with this Llanna. It had only taken a few blinks of the eye for her to almost fall for her. That sensual vibration, the tingle that her voice had triggered in her, still resonated in Veidja. And now... N'Arahn was so close to her, his skin separated from hers only by the thin fabric. She could feel his heartbeat; her own quickened to the same beat.

The thought of their scents mingling, his lips brushing hers. She swallowed, feeling heat rising inside her. Stretching just a little. His kiss was certainly gentle, in stark contrast to this hardness that...

A screech tore her from her thoughts, but the demonlord held her gaze. What was she doing here? Oh mother, what had she almost done? It could only be the influence of that demoness. Shake it off, now!

"Leave me alone, demon. I haven't made my choice yet." Her voice didn't sound as firm as she would have liked, but it was enough that she reminded him of his duties. With a contemptuous growl, he took half a step back. "That just looked different, angel." He shrugged his shoulders. "But as you say. We still have a ways to go anyway."

When he was no longer blocking her view, she saw where the screeching had come from. Darr was holding a lesser demon by the throat, but had apparently dislocated an arm beforehand. Now he could no longer scream, only whimper in the grip of the captain, who looked at him dispassionately.

"Master?" N'Arahn finally turned away from her and focused his attention on the pitiful messenger. A band striped in various shades of red identified him as a subordinate of a demonlord, though Veidja had no clue to whom these colors belonged.

She furtively wiped her hands on the fabric of her trousers and took a deep breath. She felt confused and vulnerable. All these thoughts and feelings, were they just external influences? How much of it had been dormant inside her before? She had been on the verge of kissing the demonlord. Had really wanted him for that moment. The demon who had captured her, imprisoned her and forced her to fight in his arena. Who had given her the choice of submitting to him or handing her over to the Lord of Hell. And she hadn't given a thought to the consequences or how wrong it all was. No, she didn't recognize herself in that. It had to be Llanna's doing alone.

N'Arahn had sent the messenger away again with a few words and his captains had disappeared into the crowd as before.

"Come." Without looking at her, he walked on and she followed him. As much as it disgusted and humiliated her, she was safer around him at the moment.

Veidja kept up with the demonlord, though he was now picking his way at a much faster pace. If he hadn't wanted to be contacted again, he had achieved his goal; no one approached them, lesser demons literally jumping aside when necessary. N'Arahn was clearly no longer interested in introducing her to the pleasures of hell. And she wouldn't have said she minded.

Slowly, Veidja could see what they were heading for. The cave they were in was almost impossibly large, but there was another side to it. The path between the stalls, arbors and other meeting places widened noticeably, and the crowd thinned out. At the end of the path, far away, a huge dark hole led out of the cave. Any light that should have entered the passage was swallowed up right at the doorway. Two gigantic black gates flanked the entrance.

By now they were alone on the black-paved path and N'Arahn found his way back to a more moderate pace. Every single stone was inscribed with characters that were unfamiliar to Veidja. If she tried to read them, her eyes immediately hurt, followed by a stabbing headache. So she rather tried to estimate how far away the gate and this eerie corridor were. But she failed. The ratios were too distorted, and she didn't know whether the pavement remained the same width. And since there was no one on the path in front of them, she couldn't make an assessment in this respect either.