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Chapter 23

For a moment I just sit there staring at my grandfather as I try and process what he is saying. Eventually I manage to make my brain and mouth work together, "Excuse me?"

Celestra smiles softly saying, "Your grandfather chose you to take his place Ebony. In time we want you to take over leading the family and protecting our realm."

I slowly shake my head and lean back, "No, I don't think so. Not only is it a bad idea in general, seeing as certain others want me dead, but I can think of at least three reasons why it is a bad, horrible, potentially suicidal idea."

Tribus raises an eyebrow in a look that is a mix of curiosity and irritation, "And just what would those reasons be?"

Suppressing a snort I begin listing, "First, I know nothing about leading a group sing along let alone a family of demons, many of whom are many times older than me. Second, I have no desire, nor have I ever, wanted to be in any form of leadership role. I am perfectly happy sitting on the sidelines watching other people deal with idiots."

Tribus stares at me for a moment then asks, "Whats the third?"

I blink back at him a moment but don't answer right away causing him to repeat himself, "What is the third reason Ebony."

Taking in a deep breath before looking down in shame as I admit to something I have always hated having to admit, "The third reason it's a bad idea for me to be named your successor is.... because I am to weak to be."

This causes his look to shift from slight irritation to full on confusion, "What do you mean your to weak. I see no weakness sitting before me."

Looking up at him I barely suppress a snarl as I answer, "For eight hundred years I have barely been able to keep myself alive while running from Agerex and demon hunters, I spent nearly fifty years enslaved to a despicable warlord in one of his work camps."

I turn and point to chase, "Hell I would be dead right now if not for Chase and his pack. So how do you think I could possibly be strong enough to lead a hoard of demons?"

For a long moment Tribus sits there studying me before he leans back in his throne and steeples his fingers in front of him and says, "That is not what I see when I look at you. When I look at you I see a strong and proud young demon not yet even in his prime who has not only survived but managed to thrive against all odds.

"You not only survived your awakening, but defeated those who attacked and beat older more experienced demons. You say you were enslaved for half a century, but I say you endured and triumphed after five decades of constant war never once breaking. You say you ran from others, perhaps, but you never let them beat you either. Very few of our kind can say they have gone so long while being chased.

"Then you say you are to weak to defend yourself without help from others? I believe that shows some of the greatest strength of all, knowing when to accept help from those willing to give it."

He lowers his hands and looks me straight in the eyes before continuing, "Leading in my place is less about strength of the body and more about strength of mind and spirit. You will gain physical strength in time, of this I have no doubt. But very few in our family have even half the spirit you have, fewer still could suffer as you have and not break...."

I cut him off with words barely above a whisper, "....I did break....."

The silence from his sudden halt of his speech echoed around the room as all eyes turned to me. Chase looks at me with understanding and sorrow, Celestra looks at me with concern and worry, but Tribus looks at me with a cold, narrowed gaze as he asks slowly and deliberately, "What do you mean?"

I swallow and shift my gaze slightly so I am not looking him directly in the eyes, "After I regained my composure after my awakening I was so horrified over what, I thought, I had done that I locked my demon side away behind as many layers as I could. So much so that it sealed away a great deal of my power with him."

There is a shifting from Tribus as he mutters something under his breath while I continue, "From time to time he has managed to escape captivity causing massive amounts of destruction. All except for one time...."

Shifting slightly as I relive my tale once again, "You see the end of my slavery as winning a war without breaking, but what you don't understand is the only reason that war ended was because I did break."

I finally look back up and stare my grandfather straight in the eyes saying, "I made a blood deal to escape. The deal was to make it so that I and one other could escape, to do so required giving my demonic side full freedom for a short time. Once the deal was struck he was free to do as he pleased to see the bargain fulfilled.... and he did. Every single man, woman, and child, free or slave, within that warlords domain was slaughtered in one night."

From beside me Chase lets out a slow sigh at hearing my story again, my grandmother lets out a small gasp, and as I watch the color drains slightly from my grandfathers face as he asks, "You were the one responsible for massacre in the southern desert over three hundred years ago?"

I nod slowly, "Yes, I unleashed my demonic side."

My grandfather swallows hard, "I didn't see it directly, only heard reports and rumors.... But those who did see it first hand said they had never seen such carnage before, and this is coming from other demon lords who felt the rush of power unleashed there."

For a moment he just stares at me before asking, "What kind of a bargain did you make that night?"

I take a moment to think back on the night before saying, "The bargain I made with that wolf was for me to break us free and he would in turn owe me the debt of life for me to collect at a later date in any manner I feel is appropriate."

Celeste's eyes widen as she asks, "And you collected that from him?"

Shaking my head as I answer, "No I have yet to collect on it."

Both of my grandparents look at each other in confusion then back at me before Tribus asks, "Ebony, if this happened over three hundred years ago how could you expect that wolf to still be alive after so long?"

I look him straight in the eyes and say, "We are not the only long lived people in this world as you well know. Though he is perhaps the last of his."

For a moment he stares at me in confusion then a spark of understanding flashes in his eyes and he asks in a tone that is a mix of surprise and concern, "You mean there is still at least one of them out there? And you know where he is?"

Nodding I say, "Just the one as far as I know, as for where he is.... I don't know exactly but I do know how to find him."

Tribus turns to Celeste and says, "If this wolf is who I think it is then there is a great deal more going on than we realized."

I look at them both confused as I ask, "What do you mean more than you realized?"

Celeste turns to me and says, "Nothing that should concern you now my dear. Just some old promises that your grandfather may have to keep one day."

I look between them for a moment before Tribus says, "It's just something from a time long before you were born and has no bearing on our current discussion. Now you said that you made the deal and unleashed your inner demon? Are you telling me that during your awakening another entity was created and you two have never merged?"

Sighing I lean back in my chair and say, "No we have not merged, why would I have ever wanted to merge with the entity that, I thought, had killed my mother?"

As those words leave my mouth I feel a sudden surge of emotion from deep in my mind where Dai resides. A mixture of anger, regret, and relief flow over me and I know that he has been listening to our entire conversation.

Tribus stares hard at me before saying, "Ebony, listen to me carefully. What you have done to your demonic side is extremely dangerous considering how powerful he is. From the reports I have received about the massacre and from seeing with my own eyes what happened at your awakening..... You have no idea who it was that attacked you though do you?"

Shaking my head and suppressing a strong urge to roll my eyes I say, "Before today I didn't even know there was an attack."

My grandfather mutters a curse under his breath before saying, "The bodies that we were able to identify after you fled all belonged to full blooded upper tier demons. At least twelve of them were killed by you. Your father could only account for three that he defeated."

This time I feel the blood drain from my face as my whole body goes slack in my chair as only one word escapes my mouth in a horse whisper, "....twelve...."

From the corner of my vision I see Chase looking back and forth between us with a look of confusion on his face before he asks, "Ok I'm lost here. But what does that mean? I've seen other wolves and even humans take on groups of that many or more and come out on top."

Tribus turns to Chase and says, "My apologies, I forget you don't know much about our kind. In demon culture there are a variety of demonic races, our family is draconian in nature meaning we are part dragon, other races are equally connected to other ancient creatures. With in each race there are tiers of demons based on our relative strengths."

Chase nods along, "Kind of like ranking in a wolf pack?"

Tribus thinks for a minute before saying, "Kind of, though in a pack you can move up and down in ranking, demons typically are in one tier for life based on their potential power. At the top are the demon lords, like myself, then you have the demon generals, upper tier, mid tier, and lower tier demons."

For a moment Chase thinks on this the asks, "So your saying Ebony was able to defeat a dozen or more upper tier demons on his own? Is that so unusual?"

Tribus nods, "Very unusual, normally only a demon lord would be able to do such a thing without difficulties. Someone as young as Ebony would have a very hard time even with training, and never has a newly awakened demon done such a thing before or since."

Still looking confused Chase looks at me with a questioning gaze forcing me to try and explain. With a hard swallow I try and answer, "Chase, a mid tier demon could likely wipe out your whole pack in a day, If you were able to beat them it would still be costly. An upper tier might break a sweat from exertion."

I glance at my grandfather, "A demon lord could do it by sneezing, for all the effort it would take."

Understanding seems to cross his eyes before he turns back to Tribus, "And Ebony defeated them?"

Tribus nods, "Untrained, barely out of diapers for all intents, he not just defeated them but destroyed them."

I look up at my grandfather and say, "I didn't, Dai, my demonic side, did that."

Celeste leans forward and asks, "This was right after your mother died wasn't it?"

Shrugging I reply, "I suppose, the only memories either of us have are blacking out while following my parents then coming to my senses running through the forest in my demonic form as I am now and flying off."

She turns to my grandfather and says, "Do you think her death could have triggered a surge of anger that amplified his strength?"

Tribus rubs his chin with his right hand as he thinks, "It's certainly possible, and if he has suppressed his other half since then would explain why he has been so hard to find and why he has so little power, relatively speaking."

With a snort I look at Chase who has another confused head tilt going on before I say, "Not everyone here speaks cryptic."

Giving me an annoyed look my grandfather says, "Most demons past a certain age gain the ability to sense other demons within a certain range and can gauge their relative strength. The stronger a demon is the farther they can be sensed. In my case I can usually tell most demons within two days flight of where I am if they are mid tier or higher. Ebony, however, is different."

Shifting in my chair slightly I respond, "My strength as I am now is barely a low tier isn't it."

He nods slowly, "If I were to go based on that ability alone I would not even be able to tell you were draconian if you were in you wolf form. You have managed to lock away nearly all of your demonic power. How you have managed to do that without killing yourself, driving you demon side insane, or worse, I have no idea."

At that even I feel a wave of fear and concern wash over me, both from my own feelings and from Dai, "What do you mean? I thought others kept their demonic sides separate from their original selves as well."

Celeste looks at me with concern, "Thats true Ebony, but it's very rare and very dangerous for those that do, something you would have been taught had you grown up here. As it is your education is much more limited than we had imagined. Fifty years was not enough to prepare you properly."

Leaning back and folding my arms across my chest I look down at the floor as possibilities of what could have happened or could still happen because of my ignorance begins to flow through my mind. Then the sudden fear that somehow I could loose control and hurt Chase or his pack bubbles to the surface and panic soon begins to follow it.

Before my emotions take hold however another wave of call assurance counters the panic along with one echoing word, 'Never'. Instantly I realize that neither Dai or I will allow any harm to befall Chase or the others if we can help it.

Looking back up I look at my grandmother and say, "Well I have made it this long I don't see any reason to think I can't keep going just the way I am and seeing as I don't have the access to the powers you both seem to think I should have then we can give up on this whole prince thing and go our separate ways right?"

Tribus looks at his wife with a look of concern and resignation before turning back to me and says, "Ultimately I can't force you to step up no. But you must understand that there are those who want nothing more than to see you killed so that they can have a shot at taking my place."

Uncrossing my I arms I stand back up and pace a short distance away turning my back on all three of them as I think. Then an idea hits me.

Turning back to my grandparents I ask, "You said that the writings that were found said it would be the hybrid son of a half breed that took your place right?"

Tribus looks at me confused then says slowly, "....Thats right....why?"

I move back and stand behind my chair gripping the back with both claws before saying, "Well how many children have you and grandma had that could be considered half breeds? And of those how many of them had sons that would be cousins in my generation?"

Celeste shakes her head then says, "I see where your going with this Ebony, and while your right that could be the case, if you had other male cousins."

I look at my grandmother in surprise and ask, "You mean I don't?"

She shakes her head, "You and Agerex are the only two males of your generation that claim me as their grandmother. All the others are pure blood demons whose parents were born before your grandfather and I met."

The little hope I had growing began to die as I realized what her words mean. If the writings were to be believed then only two hybrids in existence fit the criteria for the prince. As the full weight of what she is saying settles on me something shifts in the back of my memory and I glance down at the mess that is my belongings scattered on the floor, my eyes looking over them for something. Then I see it.

Moving quickly around my chair I reach down and brush a loose shirt out of the way revealing the cover of the journal Chase found in the library. Picking it up the book seems to open of its own accord in my palm to the page I was thinking of.

Tribus shifts uneasily in his chair asking, "Ebony, what is that?"

I glance up at him for a second saying, "Its an old journal that we found in the house where Chase and his pack live. The previous owner had it for some reason."

Quickly scanning the page I find the right passage before looking back up asking, "How many pages were those writing on that were found?"

My grandmother looks at me confused saying, "Just two pages torn from a book why?"

Keeping a claw on the passage I am wanting I quickly flip to the front of the journal and reveal the torn edges of two missing pages. With a cold shiver running down my back I swallow hard before asking, "What did they say exactly?"

Glancing at each other my grandparents share a concerned expression before Tribus says, "I don't remember the exact wording but it was something along the lines of 'Contained in these writings are the signs for the next demon lord. Greater than all before him, the son of the hybrid will reign above all others with powers never seen before. Evils beyond compare will seek him out, while good will be in his debt. Beware his wrath from which demons will flee. Here follows the path to find the future."

Thinking over the words in my mind and doing my best to visualize the corresponding runes I flip back to the page and begin to read, "....when there is night at noon brothers will speak to each in nothing but truth. Short the time of peace between them will be, before the wrath will break free. The end of the beginning and the beginning of the end will mark a new age."

I look back up at my grandparents and say, "I think this journal is the rest of your writings and it wasn't written by a demon."

Tribus quickly stands from his throne and moves down till he is on the same level as me and holds out a hand, "Let me see that."

Handing it over to him he quickly begins to thumb through the pages. After a few moments he says, "Most of this is just someone's normal journal. But the handwriting does match the pages we have."

He looks up at me and asks, "How much have you managed to read?"

Shrugging I say, "Not a whole lot actually cause the first two pages were missing. Without knowing the context of those pages it was very hard to translate the rest before now. Most of what I did read could have had multiple translations."

He shakes his head before looking up at me asking, "Do you mind if I keep this journal and study it for a bit? I have a feeling that there is more in here that we need to know and would be best for it to be kept out of the hands of those seeking to undermine me."

I glance at Chase who just shrugs before I say, "I guess that will be fine."

He moves back to his throne but instead of sitting stands beside it deep in thought staring down at the journal in his hands before turning back and saying, "There is still much that we need to discuss in time Ebony, but for now I think it would be best if the two of you went back home and let us think on things. Though you and I will need to have a much more in-depth conversation both about and with your inner demon, Dai did you say? I look forward to meeting him."

He looks at me before I can reply saying, "It is nice to see you again Ebony, you have grown quite a bit since I last saw you and it does my heart good to know your ok." He glances down at Celeste before looking back and adding, "But before you two leave I think your grandmother has one last thing she wants you to have."

With that he turns and walks out the back of the room through a side door leaving Chase and I alone with Celeste who has watched him leave. Shaking her head she says, "He never has been one for goodbyes."

She turns back to me and says, "He may not have said it but he is very happy you did come back even if doing so brought up some painful truths for everyone."

Snorting I bend down and begin gathering up the remainder of my belongings saying, "He has a funny way of showing it."

Getting up from her throne she quickly moves down and begins to help me gather things up and putts them away into my pack. As she does so her paw settles on the small wooden block with runes on it. Lifting it up gently she smiles down at it then up at me asking, "You kept this? After all this time and hardships?"

I shrug and reach for it taking it from her grasp saying, "I don't know why I did, just never could make myself throw it away. It's just a useless block."

She shakes her head before standing up, "Oh Eb it is so much more than that, but thats something for you to discover on your own."

Moving to walk down the hall she says, "Follow me you two, there is someone who has been waiting a very long time to see you Ebony."