The Demons Of Sotiria

This is the first story I've published...

Prologue

Kane stood at the edge of the lake looking down into the red tinted water. The blood was so thick, he could drown in just the sight of it.

No sun shall Shine, No life heart shall beat, until all debt

is paid, and misery claims thee

The line ran over and over in Kane’s head. He looked to the blackened sky: No sun; Only the remains of the death spirits. He cocked his head to the wind. No heart beat, no breath, no life. Yes, misery had claimed him, through body and soul.

“What debt must I pay!” he screamed to the heavens. Thunder cracked and he heard another distant cry of a life ending... or beginning. The cry continued on into the guilt ridden air. It ruffled the very fabric of Kane’s time and space. A baby? In this Hell?

Kane kicked into motion, running feverishly after the sound. He ran alongside the river of blood for what seemed like ages, smelling the coating of death, and hurt, coming upon a village, small and desolate.
Unlike all the other places he’d come across, this town seemed to be standing on its own. The concrete houses were dusty, and he could see the cracked windows from where he stood on the hill top. As he drew closer, the stench of death rose strong in the air and he coughed.

The cobble stones clicked under his feet as he walked faster down the streets. The crying had stopped and he feared the babe had already been infected. His heart dropped, but he continued forward. How was he to find the infant now that his trail had run dry?

Don’t stop looking

A tiny voice called inside him. His legs listened though his mind saw no point. The babe was dead, his hope was gone.

And then, very distant, almost inaudible, he heard the cries. Small cries of loneliness, of fear, and of misery. How he knew those cries well.

He came upon a long stone house. The windows were still intact but the door was hanging off its hinges. Kane walked through, having to push away several planks of wood. It seemed that the roof of the first floor had caved in on the bottom.

And onto a man.

His long strong arm was stretched out under the wood, his fingers slightly curled, with dried blood caking near and on him. The scent of death was strong, meaning he’d died only moments ago. Before Kane had heard the baby? If he had run faster, would he have been able to save him?

A faint whisper cracked through the silence. Kane’s head shot sideways to a dusty sitting room. The only furniture still intact was a small table, with a girl huddled underneath.

She wore nothing to hide her nudity, and she cradled a swath of rags close to her chest. When Kane move toward her, her head shot up with a startled gasp.

She hugged the cloth tighter to her chest and shuffled backwards on her rump. She was a very pretty girl; underneath all the grime.

Part of Kane’s curse was to see the person’s heart before they died. This girl had a strong heart, a willingness to protect the bundle of cloth, and compassion to the man that lay beneath the wood.  Was he the father to the babe, and she the mother?

“I wish to help,” he whispered to her, not wanting to scare her away. She still looked at him with intense fear, trying to get away from him into the shadows of the wall. “I am not infected,” he promised and held up his hands. Her expression slowly went from fear to understanding. Though she could never fully understand. He was the one who had condemned the world. He was the one who should be buried and dead.

He watched her a moment more. She was having an inner battle, trust or don’t trust. He could see the flush of her skin and the dark circles under her eyes. She was infected, she would die.

“My baby...” she whispered. Kane looked back at the bundle in her arms. The little cries he had heard earlier were coming from the cloth.

“I shall help you both,” Kane vowed. The girl would die, but he would not let her die alone. He took a step toward her, and she cringed away.

A blood curdling scream of pain shot through the air. Kane ran to the door and stuck his head out. Three houses down a blazing fire burst from the door, sending debris across the street. The fires turned into a blazing inferno in record time, and Kane could still see the demons inside. The demons he had let loose. They feasted on the flesh of the bodies inside. Tearing away the skin and bone to devour the soul.

“We must go!” He called to the girl inside. When he turned back he saw her trying to climb the stairs with a leg dragging behind her. Was it broken? Was she also hurt in the fall of the roof?

He strode toward her and picked her up into his arms. She gasped and struggled against his hold.

“Stop, you will harm the child,” he scolded her. She stopped immediately and looked tenderly down at the baby. Kane could see now that the babe was male, and pale. Probably hadn’t eaten yet. Could the mother not bare milk?

Was she the birth mother?

The demons roared with victory closer then Kane had expected. The room shook, most likely from the destruction of next door.

The girl pulled in a quick breath.

“Don’t scream,” Kane warned on a low tone. The girl snapped her mouth close and ducked her head. The demons roared again, this time accompanied by the screams of death. Kane watched to see if the girl had heard the screams. She seemed unaffected, so they must have been screams of the dead.

Suddenly the baby let out a long, agonized screech.  The girl moved to comfort it, while Kane sucked in a panicked breath. The demons had heard the babe.

“Do you hear the cry of a new soul, Maden?” on demon hissed. Kane froze and gripped the girl to him tighter.

“Oh yes, Jade, it sounds so sweet and delectable...”

Kane’s body switched into panic mode. He raced up that stairs with the girl and bolted for the window. He would be damned before the demons got these humans. He wanted to laugh at the thought. Be damned? He already was.

He shouldered the window, not even feeling the glass dig into his skin. 

“Where?” the girl whispered. Kane had a hard time hearing her over the pounding of his own heart, but at least she had stop struggling.

“I have a safe place, I shall take you there.” He could hear the demons thrashing through the lower level. He could hear the man’s soul cry out as the demos devoured it.

The baby cried out again.

Kane froze for a moment, his mind a flutter with questions.

“I hear the babe again. The fresh new soul is here somewhere,”

“I hear it as well, we shall find it soon,”

The demons were right below them now. Kane sprang back into action. The roof began to burn under his feet and the smell of smoke filled his lungs.

“FIRE!” the girl screamed. Just as the last of her voice had gone the roof behind them exploded into a million shards. A black winged demon and a snake of fire flew out of the hole and shot straight to them. Kane sped across the roof to the next house. When he took the flying leap, the girl shrieked loudly. Kane’s ears rang and his bones shook. The demons just laughed.

His feet hit the solid roof of the next house and he took off running again. He could feel the heat of the demons breathing down his neck.

Just a little further, then you’ll be safe.

Those soothing words drove him forward. He could also feel the erratic heart beat of the little thing in his arms.

Give us the souls Kane. We know you have them

The demons taunted to his head. He hated when they got in his head, but they seemed to be the only voices he had heard in ages.

“Don’t stop...” a soft voice pulled him from his thoughts. He looked down at the scared face of the girl in his arms. Then he became more aware of the demons advancing on them.

S**t, he was slowing down.

Then, he saw, for the second time today, a shred of hope. The river was becoming clearer on the horizon. It glistened with red hope.

He jumped another roof and landed with a thud.

You`ll never make it. I can already feel their souls sliding down my throat.

Just give in now and we`ll leave you alone.

“What can you do otherwise!” he shouted. The girl cringed in his arms, but the babe made no sound. Kane’s heart thumped as he thought about the babe dying. He could survive the infection, the demon’s fire, even plunging into the bloody river, but he died every time he watched another human die.

The roof dropped off suddenly and Kane found himself falling toward the ground. The girl screamed in his arms as wind rushed past his ears.  He took in a deep breath and swung his legs forward.

The ground caused a terrible tremor in his legs when he hit, but he kept going. He had to save this girl and the baby. He couldn’t be alone again.

Stop this now Kane, give us the souls!

 Kane pushed harder on his aching legs. He felt several sharp stings riding up his bones. Broken? Most likely.

He felt the cobble streets turn to grass, and the sun shone right onto his face. He squinted and saw the red strip of hope.

NOOOOOO!

The demons screamed right before Kane hit the border. He could feel the invisible shield capture him and push all evil away. The baby murmured and the girl gasped. Could they feel it too?

He could hear the long stream of profanities coming from the demons. They stalked along the border. Hunters stalking for the prey.

Kane let the woman slide to her feet in front of him. She gathered her balance, then took a step away from him. She turned to the river, the demons, then back to him.

“What happened?” she asked timidly. She was so frail, so weak. And he was the monster that had unleashed this Hell on her.

“I’m sorry.” He said right before he blacked out.

 

Kane woke up to a soft patting on his face. He blinked against the sun and tried to get a focus on the angel hovering over him. An angel? Was he being granted the privilege to go to heaven while the rest of the world lay in Hell?

No! He couldn’t let that happen.

He tried to pull away from the beauty and get back to Hell. He thrashed against the raging pain in his body.

“Stop, hero, stop moving or the pain will increase,” the angel said. No! He would never stop moving. He wanted the pain. He wanted to go back to Hell where he belonged.

“Please stop moving.” the angel whispered. Kane froze. He knew that panicked whisper; the girl.

And what about the baby?

He tried to ask the angel girl about the child. His throat constricted around his words, also cutting off his breathing. The angel girl pulled back and Kane's heart beat faster. Where was she going? How was he supposed to get her back if he couldn’t breathe?

Suddenly a hard thump beat down on his chest. He gasped in lungs full of air.

“Is that better, hero?” the girl’s face appeared above his again. He breathed in her honey and sun scent, maybe he was in heaven.  He nodded slightly. The angel girl sat back on her heals and nodded.

For the first time, Kane noticed she had clothed herself.

She had vines woven together to make a loincloth and a bra. It didn’t cover much, but it was better than nothing. He would have to find her some decent clothing.

“How long... how long have I been out?” He asked breathlessly. The girl gathered a piece of cloth and dabbed it against his heated head. He softened at the cool water.

“You’ve were unresponsive for several days, just the last three days have I been able to touch you and mend you” she said nonchalantly while she continued to dab his head.  He worked the numbers in his head.

Seven days?

What had happened while he was out? Where the demons still prowling the barrier? Had any more humans tried to contact him? He doubted the last. No other humans were alive.

Except for the girl and the child.

“Where is the child?” he managed to squeeze past his lungs. The girl brushed back her fiery red hair and turned to look over her shoulder. Kane tried to see too, but only managed to snag a glimpse before his head collapsed. He had managed to see the young baby lying under a nearby tree. He, also, was asleep and Kane thought that was a wonderful idea. He would sleep while the angel tended to his wounds and cooled the raging inferno in his body.

He smiled this time, as the blackness consumed him.

 

“Hero, wake up. Hero, you must wake up!” a panicky voice called through his dreams. Kane tried to understand the words. They seemed to trigger warning bells in the back of his mind. But how did he obey them? And why were the voices calling him Hero? He was no hero, he was a devil.

“Hero, the demons have returned, you must wake up!” the voice called to him again. This time he jolted out of his sleep, coughing for air. The woman leaned over him, her hands clenched together into one tight fist. She hit him again. And this time around, it had not been so pleasant.

“Why did you wake me, wench?” Kane demanded. The woman looked hurt by his insult. Good. She had hurt his chest.

“I-I... I-I” the girl stuttered and untwined her finger, the together again. Kane’s chest hurt, but for a new reason. He felt bad for hurting the only other human able to converse with him. He sighed and leaned back down. That’s when he saw the flick of flames out of the corner of his eye.

He twisted his head enough to see the new demons prowling the border. They seemed to be large foxes. One pitch black like death in the night, the other consumed by fire. Both reeked of death 

You are the demon guarding these souls?

Kane froze at the voices, they sounded familiar. 

Anwser Me demon!

This time the word were a growl and Kane stopped wondering about the demons. They were here to kill him, and the others. He had to save them.

Author's Note

There is a Poem that goes along with the story that will be posted at a later time, due to exstensive editing. Thank you to my Editor/BFF for making sure I don't look like the idiot everyone knows I can be. The title is just temporary...

Reviews

[Malychyte]

Wow! I thought that was told really well! I got a little lost in the beginning, but maybe thats just because I wasnt ready to absorb so much interesting descriptions so fast haha! Still, very awesome! Im really curious as what kind of setting this is in, and hope to hear more from it! Keep at it! :)

[Babieegirl]

haven't read anything like this in a while. i used to write about angels and demons a lot. maybe that's what attracted me to your story so easily. it was a great write. i think this is original, yes? not based on anything.. if so it's really great that you though of this all on your own. (=

[Kestrova]

This really interested me and I found it to be a very enjoyable read! The only thing I found is that it could probably use more detail, but other than that, I think it's great and I'd love to read more. :)