“Ah, that’s what has the Church of Tiernon so upset.” Heron grinned. “Somehow — and no one understands how — the greater demon was able to possess a number of priests and Rod members and turn them on each other, before literally tapping into Tiernon’s illumination streams and harnessing Tiernon’s god pool to reverse the blade!”
Sir Samwell sat back hard, banging his head on the wall behind him. “How is that possible?”
“We have no idea, nor does the Church.” Heron smiled. “But it does make them anxious.”
“So then the demon abducted Sir Talarius?” Sir Samwell asked.
“Opened an Abyssal Gate below the man’s feet and dropped him straight into the Abyss!” Heron shook his head in admiration while grinning.
“Well, I would have to admit, that is justice well served!” Sir Samwell told the Wing Arms Master.
“Indeed. Unfortunately, the demon must face his own high justice.”
Sir Samwell tilted his head. “So, because this demon brought this Lord Edwyrd into Gizzor Del, and led to the constabulary vessel being sunk, you are pursuing it into the Abyss?”
“Well, no; we are not quite that insane.” Heron grinned back.
“That is a relief,” Sir Samwell replied.
“No, we have consulted and compared detailed notes with the Rod and Church. We made a scrying of the battle and have watched it repeatedly. We believe that Lord Edwyrd and the greater demon are the same person. While the human form that approached Talarius is not identical to the descriptions we have of Lord Edwyrd, they are similar,” Heron explained. “In any event, we believe that Lord Edwyrd is, in fact, the greater demon. It is the only explanation we can come up with that fits all the pieces of the puzzle. It also explains the thousands of demons — those were also Lord Edwyrd’s. We do not believe a wizard could safely control that many hidden invisible demons among a city of wizards.”
“Hmm. I suppose I can see that,” Sir Samwell said.
Heron nodded. “We felt that we could use priestly support in serving justice upon Lord Edwyrd. But beyond even that, they have the ability to track and detect Talarius in the Abyss. Something that we would not be able to do on our own. Thus the alliance.”
“Fascinating!” Sir Samwell exclaimed. “I think it is an excellent idea, except for one thing.”
“What one thing?” Heron asked, suddenly alarmed.
“If he were controlling a thousand hidden demons, he would almost have to be an archdemon, if not a demon prince.”
Heron frowned. “You think so? Everyone we’ve spoken with has insisted he is a greater demon.”
Sir Samwell shrugged. “Based on my experience, such as it is”—he gestured around them, indicating his tenure in the Abyss—“it is quite unlikely that a greater demon would command the allegiance of a thousand demons, let alone be able to force them into hiding in a wizard city.”
Heron sighed. “That will certainly make executing the warrants against him more difficult.”
“Indeed.” Sir Samwell nodded.
Perhaps one of the first principles taught to me by my first master, Zylac, was that of polarization. Now, of course, most of my learned readers will assume I mean ferromagnetic polarization; however, that is but an analogue to that of which I speak. I refer here to the central concept of life,
Animus, as we all know, is the manifestation of the elemental Plane of Spirit upon the physical planes of existence. It is that which, when assembled according to the rules of Law, produces the Soul — that which we consider our primary life force, the true essence of who we are, and that which allows us to transcend the limitations of the physical world and return to the Outer Realms upon death, or to be reincarnated in new flesh, depending on our contracts with the deities of the multiverse under the covenant established by Adam and Eve, from whom mortal kind is derived.
In the realms in which the majority of us live, animus is a positive force; it is life and living and is the key to immortality. However, what most will not tell you is that the multiverse is bounded by more realms than those we think of. In addition to the standardly taught multitude of physical planes, Elemental Planes, Outer Planes, the singular Astral Plane and the truly hellish Abyss, there are four other quasi-planes.
I refer to them as quasi-planes because no one or thing may dwell upon them. No animus may ever reach them. Rather, they are more like ”forces” that shape and bend the other planes, particularly the physical planes and Outer Planes. So while many conveniently refer to them as
