The Heavenly Host

“As I’m sure you are aware, Tal Gor shall be selecting twenty of you to join us on this hunt.” Vespa grinned. “I’m sure many of you will be regretting your failure to trust his word earlier. Try not to sob too hard at losing out on what will certainly be the most glorious event in all of your lives to date. If you aren’t chosen, that means you’ll just need to prove your worth to our shaman before we return to hunt here again!”

Tal Gor tried to suppress a joyous grin and look properly annoyed. This was clearly the best day of his life; he certainly did not want to show it!

Chapter 103

Talarius woke with a start. What time is it? he wondered. It was dark in the room, of course; there was no window and he had been lighting the room with his armor, which had gone out once he fell asleep. He willed the armor to light and began to get dressed. It was somewhat disturbing to note that his padding was completely dry. The air in the room was a bit dry, at least compared to the rest of the mountain complex since the rain had started. It was not, however, dry enough that his under-padding should have dried out within a few minutes.

Talarius walked over and dragged the giant wardrobe away from the door as soon as he was girded with his various vestments, armor, weapons and accouterments. Even with the strength boost he got from his gauntlets, the dresser was heavy; the very reason he’d used it to block the door. He opened the door and walked out into the main room to see daylight streaming through the balcony doors. The octopod and Boggy were playing some card game, Antefalken was perched on a chair back, oiling his harp, and the other demons were off somewhere.

“Well, if it isn’t sleeping beauty?” Tizzy asked or perhaps stated, grinning maliciously at Talarius.

Talarius glared at the demon through his helmet. Apparently, the demon somehow knew he had fallen asleep without his armor and was intent on irritating him.

“Where is everyone?” Talarius asked, ignoring the demon’s jibe.

Boggy looked up. “Rupert is off with Fer-Rog somewhere; Tom is with his commanders arranging hunts for the feast; and Reggie and Estrebrius are still in Astlan as far as I know.” By coincidence, even as Boggy spoke, Reggie materialized in the room, sighing and quickly sitting down.

“Rough night?” Tizzy’s eyebrows were making those obscene leering motions again. Talarius found this exceedingly discomforting. Not that there was anything particularly comforting about the vile multi-pod; however, this was even more disquieting than his usual behavior.

Reggie closed his eyes. “Yes, more dream sex training. I am not enjoying it.”

Tizzy shook his head as if not understanding. “Kids today! In my day, it was all sex, drugs and rock and roll! What has become of this new generation?”

Reggie glared at him. “You are a twenty-plus-thousand-year-old demon. How do you even know about rock and roll?”

“I used to party with Keith Richards every time he came to the astral plane, which was quite often,” Tizzy said.

Reggie shook his head, clearly not sure who that was; Talarius certainly had no idea.

“What I want to know,” Boggy interrupted, “is how do these wizards know how to train an incubus? Doesn’t that seem a bit odd?”

Antefalken looked up. “A bit; however, it’s not impossible. Wizards and animages have employed both incubi and succubi for centuries. While I am sure it is not taught in any normal schools, the knowledge is probably out there.”

Boggy shrugged. “Where is your accursed master? Do you know?”

Reggie shrugged. “I’ve really only seen her tower, but she and one of her associates mentioned Memphis. I assume it’s not the one I am familiar with.”

“Never heard of it,” Boggy said. Antefalken also shook his head.

Talarius supposed it was a good thing these demons did not know Astlanian geography. “It’s in Natoor,” he said.

“What is Natoor?” Boggy asked.

“It’s a continent south of Eton, immediately west of Najaar,” Talarius replied.

Antefalken was nodding his head. “I’ve been to both of those continents. I don’t recall a town called Memphis, though.”

“It is an archaic name for New Krinna. The name Memphis has not been widely used in a thousand years,” Talarius said.

“Ohh, okay, New Krinna I am familiar with. Never been there,” Antefalken said.

“How old is your master that he uses a thousand-year-old name?” Boggy asked Reggie.

Reggie shook his head, “Mistress. And she’s not that old, maybe thirty.”

Talarius shrugged. “Perhaps she is a heretic.”

Boggy looked at him. “A heretic?”

Talarius nodded. “There have been heretics on both continents ever since we arrived to free the people living on them. Throwbacks to their old dead gods.”

“You mean like Orcus?” Tizzy grinned.

“Orcus was a demon, not a god.” Talarius glared at Tizzy. “Since you were apparently buddies with the foul one, I should think you would know that.”

“The orcs thought he was a god,” Tizzy said, still grinning. Clearly, the annoying creature was needling him.