Demonworld Read Online Free Page B

deal fell through? Neither option seemed likely. All the same, here he was.
     
    Because the map was nothing but confusing, he put it away, climbed a low-hanging branch, and watched the sun rise. The sky was pale and blue, the same blue he had known his whole life. He could now orient himself north. Again and again he swallowed the fear that he would soon be eaten alive by monstrous gods. Again and again he told himself that if he was going to die anyway, then he could at least die on the long walk home.
     
    * * *
     
    Deep, deep underground, Sevrik Clash, Head of Guard in Haven, stalked down the dark halls underneath the Department of Science. His massive frame nearly filled the hall. A grizzled red beard, streaked with gray, shot out from his face and covered his chest. His heavy footfalls echoed against the hum of distant generators. He came to a black door, said, “Potential,” and the door hissed and swung open mechanically.
     
    He entered a great dark room lit with a few dim purple lights. Computer terminals flickered all around.
     
    “ Didi,” he said.
     
    A squat man with ink-black skin hobbled towards him, his dark shiny head and features swimming up slowly from the darkness. His leg brace rasped and sighed like a mechanical familiar, servant to a wizard of black science. He squinted his large, bloodshot eyes because they were sensitive to light, making his face a web of wrinkles. He was Head of the Departments of Science and Research, and perhaps the most intelligent man in all of Haven; though many of his opinions were unpopular, his creations were enjoyed by all. His leg brace groaned as he leaned against it. He said nothing.
     
    Towering over him, Sevrik said, “Didi, Korliss says our Project is gone.”
     
    Didi nodded slowly.
     
    “ Alive, but gone,” added Sevrik.
     
    Didi turned away.
     
    “ Didi, that thing is the ultimate weapon. If it should fall into the hands of the enemy...” He trailed off, unable to articulate his fear.
     
    Didi looked at the far end of the room. A large red panel and its single button twinkled in the darkness. “I am prepared,” Didi’s voice croaked. “I am prepared to sacrifice everything. Are you, Sevrik?”
     
    “ Prepared to destroy decades of work? Decades of waiting and cultivating? With the push of a button? All of it gone, Didi, just like that?”
     
    “ Yes,” said Didi, and Sevrik knew that his will was set firm. “We took a vow, the three of us. We knew the risk. Fate has dealt us a terrible card... but let us wait before doing anything rash.”
     
    Didi hobbled over to the terrible red button and sat down beside it. “I am in no rush to push the button. We will yet find our Project.”
     
    “ Are you that confident?” said Sevrik, knowing that he would be doing much of the work.
     
    “ I am. It is only the world and all the fates who stand against us. When has that ever stopped us? When has anything ever stopped us? We are men for whom morality is merely a hindrance… not a limit.”
     
    “ Are you losing it, Didi?” Sevrik blurted out suddenly.
     
    “ I am only staying true to our plan,” said Didi. “I feel fine. Thank you.”
     

Chapter Two
    Through the Door of the Black Valley
     
     
     
    Wodi spent the morning trekking through dense woods. At first he tried to be as stealthy as possible, but gave that up as the woods eventually filled with horrid cries, the squealing of unseen animals killing one another, and the shrill song of insects calling out, robotic and unending. He came to a grass-covered hill and, wanting to be out of the gloom of the valley, walked to the top.
     
    The woods were sparse near the crest. He saw great gray mountains to the west, north, and east, with treetops stretching out on all sides. Wodi consulted the ridiculous map, feeling foolish and tired from the walk. If the X on the map was any sort of indicator, then he was south of the river. If he followed the river under the mountain, or made the