The Fire and The Storm - The Nexus of Kellaran #2 novel Chapter 178

Part 25

“We have also never before found the demons to wait so long before returning to a world where they had been defeated and driven off. We have found few cases where a world successfully resisted the demons, and in all but one of those few cases the demons were defeated completely and killed to the last individual. In all the cases but one where a horde were driven away, it was with our assistance. The demons have yet to return to the one world that drove them away without our assistance, other than this one, but that was relatively recent, and we have no doubt that they will go back there.

“They usually return to a world they have been driven away from in less than a million years, and always with far more power than they had the first time they were there. On three occasions they have succeeded on their second attempt in destroying a world and the outpost we left close by to protect it. On about half of the rest of their second attempts they were driven away again, and on the other half they were killed to the last. They have yet to return to a world where they have been defeated twice, but we think they will if they can, eventually. A world full of life is too great a prize for them to ignore indefinitely, and they hate to let one of their defeats stand unavenged.

“With all of these factors in the balance, the nature of the demons we will soon face here is a worrying unknown.”

Six bowed to First Mauve and told her; “Thank you. It was bothering me being so ignorant of our enemy, and it feels good to know what is known, even if it isn’t that useful right now.”

“I think it’s time for us to be going home.” Mark announced with a smile. “Thanks again for these awards, and be well until we meet next time.”

Those all around returned his thanks and farewells, then Fire brought them home to Hilia at her psionic request.

“Well that was interesting.” Alilia commented as she stretched luxuriously.

“It was, especially when I was trying to have a serious conversation with a Triax god while my sister was acting like a clown!” Six stated as he gave Fire a playful shove on her shoulder.

She simply went with it, turning his force into a graceful leap-roll-spring-pirouette sequence, and laughed. “It just struck me that we’re all orbiting, as The Triax say, and we might as well be falling for all the difference that up and down make that far out in the void. But everyone was acting like they still had weight; keeping the soles of their feet or their bottom sides pointed toward Kellaran. And I wondered if it would be disorienting if I just slowly spun in random directions in the void, or just floated there with a different orientation than everyone else. It wasn’t really, disorienting that is, but it was fun.”

“The fun part was watching Six trying to ignore you!” Karz laughed.

“I love that you children can be so nonchalant about it all.” Kragorram smiled as he gave Karz an affectionate scratch on the back. “But I want to thank you all for including me in the casting of the Gate. Moving the Triax fleet was in many ways the greatest act of magic ever achieved by any Kellarani, and I’m proud to have taken part.”

“Me too.” Mark chuckled as he put his arm around Talia and admired the impending sunset. “But I think we’ve been spending too much time lately being told how wonderful we are, and by each other as often as by everyone else. Let’s try to avoid that for a few hours.”

“Well then, how would you all like to go hunting with me?” Kragorram offered in a sudden change of subject. “It’s an activity that dragons only share with their closest family and companions, and we’ve never hunted together, and it’s time we did.”