Demon Singer II (7 page)

              No significant opposition and an unstoppable force at his back. Soon, Hell would be his, then the Verge. Then with his combined forces he would grind the Thunder Monks into dust and follow their routes to the Kol Atura reaches. And then, well, then his work would begin.

              Varia Tur's satisfaction pulled the corners of his mouth into a pleased smile.  Beckoning to Blink, he sent the Verger to retrieve his package from Bonen Tansyon’s agent, a vampire named Drake.

*   *   *   *   *

              Gar Lich waited in his stretch hummer outside the lower walls of Markhato munching on a sack of candied eyeballs. The big engine burning through gas was a comforting sound. The zombie boss received a healthy cut of any global revenue produced by fossil fuels.  He always told his only friend, favorite zombie and right hand man, Cicero, the problem with the mafia was they were too small minded.  They were satisfied with small towns like Chicago and Detroit and New York.  Gar Lich ran a global protection racket, a fruitful one. If it weren't for the damn vamps, he'd be the undisputed king of black market commerce. His zombie slave trade alone generated more revenue than most small countries.

              "I delivered your message, boss." Cicero rasped. His voice hadn't been the same since his involuntary swim in the ocean. Every time Gar was tempted to feel remorse for the brutal treatment of his friend he reminded himself: Cicero was stupid. It takes a lot to get through to him.

              "What did he say?" Gar asked.

              Cicero fidgeted with his eyepatch. A recently developed habit that Gar found amusing. The zombie boss had a special eyepatch embroidered with a crab.  He laughed uproariously when he gave it to Cicero. Three chipmunks and an overweight squirrel blew up nearby.

              "They wouldn't let me in, so I wasn't able to speak to the Regent. I had to wait at the main gate just to see his assistant, Maddy. She said we have to wait for a courier to bring us paperwork to apply for temporary zombie passes.”

              "Passes?” The zombie boss grunted. “What the hell for?”

              "Markhato has adopted a zero tolerance policy for unlicensed, uninvited zombies. They get incinerated at the main gate."

              “Doesn't she know who I am?”

              “Yes boss, and she said if you asked me a stupid question like that, that I was to tell you that you are no more important than anyone else who wants a piece of the Regent's time, and that you don't hear the word no often enough, maybe you should get used to it.”

              Gar threw a few candied eyeballs down his gullet as he pondered this information.

              "Get used to it. Incinerating zombies. Hmmm. That seems a bit rude to me, does that seem rude to you Cicero? Have these savages never heard of the undead slavery abolitionist movement?”

              Cicero shrugged.

              "I hear ya, boss. It was harder than normal for me to resist the urge to eat her face."

              "I can see why," Gar Lich clapped a heavy hand on his friend's shoulder. "Don't let it make you crabby." The zombie boss guffawed at his own joke and a pigeon overhead exploded in a cloud of feathers. "Seriously though, I think maybe they've confused me with someone who is content to be ordered around like a dog. Perhaps a better understanding of who they're dealing with would be helpful. Tell our product to start eating the city."

              Cicero produced earplugs and what appeared to be an enormous dog whistle. Much like its smaller counterpart, this whistle produced a noise outside the range of human hearing.

              Gar had created the whistle himself years ago when he first started building his zombie empire.  He created a backdoor into the zombie spell that could be activated by the whistle.  Any zombie within ten miles, would make its way to the sound or be destroyed trying.

              If you sucked through it rather than blew though, the tone that sounded ordered any zombie within hearing to attack whatever was closest.

              Sometimes, it also summoned elephants.

              Gar figured he would lose all his product, and that was annoying. But it was more important to send a message: Gar Lich was not to be ignored.  The zombie boss got out of his hummer and signaled his driver to kill the engine.  Then he and Cicero leaned together against the vehicle and waited for the screams to start.

              “Boss, there was something else.” Cicero croaked. Gar grunted to indicate he was listening. “There was a zombie working at the gate, not one of yours. She had a black fleur de lis inside a yellow sun tattooed on her neck.”

              “Tansyon.” Gar growled.

              Bonen Tansyon should be dead. Years ago Gar had burned her New Orleans holdings to the ground with her inside. He wouldn't tolerate competition that made a superior product to his own. Every other zombie manufacturer produced obedient shamblers at best. Tansyon had discovered a way to create fully functioning zombies that were virtually indecipherable from humans. They had the uninhibited strength of the average zombie, but didn't rot and could be programmed to perform complex tasks. Tansyon tended to use them as prostitutes and bodyguards and made a
lot
of money with them.

              If Bonen Tansyon was back, he would need to find her and eat her. It would be hard for her to create zombies from the depths of his bowels.

              The zombie boss was roused from his musing by a sweet sound. He looked toward Markhato's wall with a smile.

              The screaming had begun.

*   *   *   *   *

              Cadence listened as Lyric joined his voice to the lament Creation was singing. She wasn't a Soul Singer, and wasn't trained in listening for the Score of Creation. Her tie to Lyric though, allowed her to gather an impression of what it was like. It was beautiful and strange and mysterious. But in this place it was broken.

              The violation of the Score here was sickening. Cadence was able to pick up what was happening from Lyric's thoughts and emotions. He learned the healing lament in his fifth measure. It carried a sense of dread with it in Lyric's mind. This was the song no Soul Singer wanted to have to sing.

              This healing didn't knit together flesh and bones. It was an ending. Mankind was entrusted to care for and nurture life.  What happened here was the exact opposite.  This lament was a cathartic acknowledgment of the grief Creation felt at a breach of the Composer's trust. It gave voice to that grief and allowed its release, so that pain could fade and restoration begin. This song acknowledged that something precious had come to an end.

              Cadence stood at attention beside him, tears shimmering down her face, bearing silent witness to the end of the Soul Singer's Guild. Amnia Nit Too stood on her other side and translated the song for her:

The Score has come to a grand pause.

The musicians sit in sober quietude as the instruments weep.

Horror dwells here now and violence has broken the bones of contentment.

Let the last veil part and life withdraw as the night takes hold.

Farewell memories and melodies

Farewell words, thoughts and actions

Be at peace madness, fear and anger

Be still nobility,

Be silent revelry,

Let all that has breath hold it in

Stand at attention and bear witness.

Sorrow, sing your melodies sweet and sad.

Fill this place with your song.

Expel your destitution in deep sighs.

Let your viscous blackness erode the landscape, the air and the hearts of all who pass through here.

Carve deep channels into our hearts and send your tears to wash the result.

Come hope, fill those paths with your promise.

Come peace, saturate the air with a settled stillness that leaves room for new music.

Stand ready all you instruments, breathe deep you players.

Grief’s night will pass.

Soon comes the dawn.

              As the last echo faded a wet drop landed on the back of Cadence's hand, drawing her attention away from the grief on her singer's face. A gentle rain began to fall.

              For all the wonders she had witnessed in her long life, never before had she seen the like. Red rain drops lit from within tumbled from the sky. It was as though millions of shimmering rubies were falling to earth, but in landing they became simple, clear water. The water pooled and ran and cascaded down the side of the crater.

              As the rain fell, the darkness retreated, fleeing before the light inside the rain. The crater was washed in a rosy glow that smoothed furrows and removed blemishes. The water washed away the acrid stench of death and left the scent of turned soil and new life. Grass and clover sprouted and grew, flowers burst into bloom, ground level fireworks of daisies and dandelions.

              In moments the crater was a sunken meadow that might be found anywhere on  the earth. Compared to the sickness it replaced, it was beautiful on a level rarely experience by mortals.

              Cadence stared in delighted wonder, her heart ached anew, but with the joy of being lost in breathtaking splendor.

              “The Ruby Rain of the Composer,” Nit breathed in wonder. “I didn't think it could be called down by a lone singer.” Cadence and Nit locked eyes for a moment, an odd sense of recognition passed between them. Nit spoke again. “What wonders await the man who can sing down miracles like this?”

Chapter 5

              Lyric sat quietly beside Nit. They shared a bench in a small quiet park watching children play. Cadence walked away to give them a bit of privacy. With the openness of the soul tie, proximity didn't affect privacy. Cadence left out of respect for Lyric's friend.

              Nit began speaking quietly.

              "Many years ago Ervin came to my town with a job offer. I'd just finished my master's degree in history and he showed up in the library I worked in as an archivist. He'd heard about me through some contacts I made in the cryptozoology world. He said I could study whatever I liked, provided I kept an open mind and was willing to travel occasionally on Guild business.  His starting offer was double my salary so I said yes.

              "My first job for the Guild involved accompanying a gifted Singer in his seventh measure to track down a phoenix in Arizona. You knew him, Keith Normvy. He hadn't gone off the rails yet. He was an earnest young man who - in my opinion - was a bit too rigid and legalistic when it came to Guild laws. He had no concept of grace or love. Everything was black and white."

              Lyric glanced sharply at Nit, picking up the not so subtle comparison to himself. Nit held up a staying hand and continued.

              "Don't misunderstand, my friend. Keith was far more black than white, even back then. I'm not casting aspersions on your moral compass, just giving you food for thought."

              "Less food, more facts, please," Lyric replied.

              "Anyway, I thought we were after some kind of statue until we found it. Interesting side note, a phoenix is much smaller than you'd think.” Nit became more animated as he tangented off topic. “This one was the size of a sparrow! I had no ide-" He stopped abruptly at the expression on Lyric's face. He sighed and continued.

              "Anyway, Ervin used that event to alert me to the fact that such creatures were real. Of course I jumped in with both feet and he began using my skills in earnest. It turns out he was much more interested in my side work as a cryptozoologist than my academic pursuits."

              Lyric waited for more, but Nit did not offer any.

              "So the story about you living for years as a carnival barker was just a cover story?"

              Nit nodded.

              "I'm sorry my friend, but Ervin swore me to secrecy. Even Guild members were not to be privy to my work for him. Carnival barker is hard to trace and puts me virtually anywhere, so slip ups are easy to cover."

              Lyric nodded. He was well aware of the secrecy of the Guild. That didn't really bother him. He was surprised and saddened that his long time friend could deceive him so completely, though.

              "What was so secret that Singers couldn't know?" Lyric asked.

              Nit shrugged.

              "Ervin never really spelled it out, but I can tell you that he was searching for something. The insanity you and I encountered in Russia was like a vacation for me compared to places the Guild Master typically sent me. Ervin sent me on all sorts of different expeditions, but my order was always the same. Keep my eyes and ears open and report every detail, no matter how inconsequential, directly to him."

              "And you have no idea what he was searching for?"

              "No, but the only questions he ever asked were about people. Eventually I came to believe he was looking for someone, not something."

              Lyric nodded as some things clicked. In his own experiences with the man he recalled that Ervin listened closely to the Singers who sat in his barber chair. His conversational questions for them were always similar. He rarely asked specific questions about events. His curiosity always concerned people. Lyric just  assumed it was his grandfatherly way of encouraging Singers to think of others rather than themselves.

              "So posing as a barber would allow him to pump us for information without the stress of reporting to the high master." He said aloud.

              Nit frowned at the contempt in Lyric's voice.

              "If you have any faith left in me, Lyric, I want you to hear and believe this. High Master Ervin and lowly barber Ervin were the same man. I never saw him behave differently from one role to the other. He loved all of you and behaved with grace, kindness and integrity as the master of this Guild, just as he did as your barber. The man you knew was truly the man he was and he deserves your respect. Do not think less of him because your feelings are hurt." Nit's voice began to snap with anger.

              Lyric looked in surprise at the small, old man.

              "I'll take that under advisement, Nit." He answered levelly. "Unfortunately, nothing seems to be what I thought it was, so I'm afraid you're just going to have to be okay with me working through it."

              They sat in silence for a time Lyric gave Nit some time to calm down before Lyric spoke again.

              "Have you found anything out about my parents or my town?"

              Lyric's entire town sat empty as far as anyone could tell. It wasn't truly empty though. Lyric had discovered with Acheron that there was a discordance in the area that, when forced into tune by his singing, revealed perfect crystalline statues of the town's residents frozen while going about their day to day lives. Among the those mysterious statues was his beloved mother, Emma. His father, Nyc, seemed to be missing as well, but wasn't a statue. He was just gone.

              "I have a friend who knows some Sprites in the Northwest Territories. Did you learn about Sprites in the Guild?"

              "Sprites are enormous supernaturals made of plasma and light who dwell above the clouds and are occasionally seen by humans." Lyric recited the little he knew from his studies. "What do they have to do with my missing town and crystallized parents?"

              Nit nodded his approval.

              "You know more than most. Very few beings have the privilege to speak with sprites because of their unique nature. It's difficult to converse with a being over a mile in diameter.  Everything we know about them comes from the Thunder Monks, who themselves are, as you know, elusive at best.

              "I heard a rumor years ago that I just had confirmed yesterday by a friend I have in the Thunder Monks. The sprites are responsible for creating the snow and hail that the Thunder Monk's guard and disperse."

              "Interesting as that may be, I fail to see how this helps." Lyric sighed.

              Nit continued excitedly. He was in his element and oblivious to Lyric's impatience.

              "Sprites love originality. That's why snowflakes are all so different. But they also love the permanence and beauty of crystalline structures. Guess what else they make!" Nit didn't wait for a response.  "Crystals! According to my contact, every crystal on the
planet
was designed by the Sprites.

              "Still not seeing the connection." Lyric said.

              "I had my friend talk to the sprites about your town. Everyone was turned into crystal, right?"

              "Yes, but more than that, they seem to be outside of our reality. I can only see them when singing with Acheron."

              "The Sprites have a sort of hive mind. The Monks aren't even sure they're not just one big organism with individual manifestations. Regardless, they are aware of every single crystal in existence, including the people of your town."

              Lyric's heart began beating harder.

              "What happened?" He asked eagerly.

              "A beautiful demoness with unusual manners performed a bit of magic that, as the Sprites put it, ‘raped their ability’. It involved blood and music and electricity. The Sprites don't know what happened after the people were turned to statues, but they had all vanished by the time it was over."

              Acheron, are you paying attention?
Lyric thought across the tie.

              Barely, Lover. Unusual manners? Once again all signs point to Bonen Tansyon.

              Lyric turned his attention back to Nit.

              "Did the Sprites say how to reverse this 'bit of magic'?"

              Nit nodded.

              "I asked my friend to talk to them about that and they said if you can make the statues reappear from wherever they've been sent, they will help you restore them. They say crystals are for many purposes.  What happened to your town isn't one of them. They also said you'll need a soul stone.

              “What's a soul stone?”

              “Don't know yet.”

              "Did they offer any insights on how to make the town reappear?”

              "Sadly, no."

              "All right, well something is better than nothing. I'll talk to Acheron about Bonen Tansyon and see what more there is to learn about her."

              The Singer pulled Ervin's envelope from his pocket and opened it.  He unfolded the piece of paper inside to see a familiar melody scribbled on the page.  Below it was a needle taped to the paper. There were no accompanying notes or instructions. The song though, Lyric's brows drew together as he tried to remember how he knew the song.  Folding it up he put it back in his pocket.

              "You're not going to sing it?" Nit asked.

              Lyric shook his head and stood up.

              "Not in public. There are no words, I have no idea what it will do. I'll find a motel for myself and the girls and check on Acheron. Then I'll try it in private."

*   *   *   *   *

              Ruby tried to hide her concern from Joss and Anaya. She didn't have Lyric's number, so she couldn't call to check on him, and her parents still weren't answering. It was strange, she had spent so much time and energy separating herself from their magical lives and becoming independent. Now that she couldn't get ahold of them, she once again felt small and alone.

              Anaya and Joss had taken some kind of pseudo parental role toward her. It was mostly endearing, but their incessant need to make her smile all the time could get annoying.  So she pretended that her desire to go see her parents was just another twist on her admittedly unpredictable behavior.

              Coasting down the hill toward her hometown in their camper filled with ill-gotten goods, Ruby noticed immediately something was amiss. There was no activity whatsoever. No traffic, no children, no animals. Everything was still and quiet. As they entered the town the air was thick with the smell of death and decay.

              An unsettling feeling took hold of her stomach as she looked at Joss in the driver seat. His cheerful countenance was grim as he drove them into town.

              "There's something amiss here, little girl."

              Anaya's huge bulk suddenly filled the space between their seats.

              "This is not a good place, my precious gem." He rumbled.

              "Turn down this street," Ruby said, determined not to panic. "Do you sense any danger?"

              "Not now," Joss replied. "But there was."

              Joss followed her directions and turned into her parent's driveway. Ruby jumped out of the camper before he reached a complete stop. Hurtling through the door she tried to keep the desperation from her voice as she called out.

              "Mom! Dad! It's Ruby! Where are you?"

              In horror she stared at the putrid corpse on the table. It took a moment to realize it was her dog, Whistler. Choking back bile, fear tightened her chest as she ran through the house. She even checked the basement. There was no one to be found.

              She followed the same path Lyric had when he explored their town weeks earlier, the same path they used to trick or treat on Halloween.

              No one was home, and she quickly got over being surprised at all the dead animals. She stopped for a long moment on a street that had been mysteriously melted. She stared in confusion at the smooth as glass road, the melted mailboxes, the houses where the vinyl siding buckled from intense heat.

              "Something evil happened here, Ruby." Anaya said from behind her.  The Knockers had followed her silently through her neighborhood. "This spot reeks of death. We probably should move on."

              "Well, there are a lot of empty houses..." Joss began.

              "Don't even think about it!" Ruby rounded on him fiercely. "Everything will remain exactly as it is."

              Joss had the presence of mind to look ashamed.

              "Of course, Ruby, foolish thought, forgive me."

              Ruby turned and walked back to her parents’ house. Anaya gave Joss a disgusted look before following her.

              Walking back into her parents house, Ruby steeled herself and entered the dining room. Trying to ignore the tears that forced their way down her cheeks as she passed her dead dog.