Sea Lord by Virginia Kantra

Author:Virginia Kantra [Kantra, Virginia]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780425226360
Publisher: Berkley Pub Group
Published: 2009-05-04T23:00:00+00:00

From his seat on the dais, Conn watched as the delegation from Hell drifted across the great hall, escorted by a rigid Morgan and the northern wardens. The finfolk shimmered in silver and black. The children of fire shifted like pillars of smoke, transparent and opaque by turn, their number and their countenances constantly changing. In the shadows of the hall, their eyes glittered like sparks.

The demon lord Gau was the solid center of this entourage. Lacking matter of his own, he adopted illusions to suit the mood of the moment, bending light and imbuing particles of earth, water, and air to sustain the form and function of a diplomat. Today, indulging a sense of humor or perhaps merely a flair for the dramatic, he had assumed the aquiline visage, flowing robe, and laurel crown of an ancient Roman. Virgil, Conn thought. Dante’s guide through the Inferno. The wise elder statesman, the virtuous pagan.Gau was fond of misrepresentations. Even his name meant “lie.”

Gau stopped in front of the dais, the focus of all eyes. “Lord Conn.”

Conn inclined his head a bare fraction. He did not stand. “Lord Gau. You have come far from Hell to trouble our company.”

The demon smiled, his teeth only slightly pointed. “All places are Hell, my lord. It is only a matter of perception.”

Conn raised his eyebrows. “You are here to debate philosophy.”

“I come to offer my respects,” Gau said, “and in acknowledgment of the long history between us.”

“I see no respect in your recent violence against our people,” Conn said coldly.

“My prince, we are not your enemies. For centuries, the children of fire have watched in sympathy as your numbers, powers, and territories decline, as the humans despoil your oceans and abuse your patience. The demon Tan sought merely to bring your attention to an existing problem.”

“Through murder.” Conn kept his voice level and his hands still on the arms of his chair. Never admit emotion. Never reveal weakness.

“Tan’s methods were perhaps extreme,” Gau admitted. “But his intentions were good.”

Enya leaned forward, displaying her bosom and her teeth. “We all know where the road of good intentions leads.”

Gau’s smile was sharper and more predatory than hers. “Through personal experience, I am sure. How many years did you sacrifice the sea’s embrace for the tepid lovemaking of your prince? With the best of intentions, of course.”

“Careful, demon,” Conn warned softly. “I will not tolerate attacks on my own. Any attacks.”

The demon stared back at him, his eyes black, blank and shiny as dead beetles in his borrowed face. “But you do it all the time,” he protested. “You watch as humans overrun the earth, pollute the water, violate the very air, and you do nothing. What does it take to exhaust your patience?”

“You are very close to finding out.”

“Am I? Am I really? And what of your people’s patience? What of the finfolk? Your father wasted centuries in dreams and denial. Do you expect them to follow you while you do the same?”

What of the finfolk? Morgan had escorted the demons from the caves and through the castle’s outer defenses.

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