Just ahead of her, Mick was growling, a low rumble of menace. If he’d been in fur, his hackles would have been standing straight up. Eyes on the creature, he repositioned himself in front of her, which didn’t block much of her view given the size of the thing.
“Demon.” The word came out distorted, as if he were speaking around extra teeth.
The demon looked amused at the protective show. Something in the cast of its smile told Sophie that they were still breathing only because this thing had not willed it otherwise.
“The wolf is quite right. I find it curious that you have come all this way, fought through my guardians, returned to where you left me seven years past, and still did not know to expect me.”
This? Sophie thought. This is what I was transporting all those years ago?
“You weren’t exactly a visible part of the entourage,” she said.
It lounged back against the dais and crossed its legs. “Yes, well, there were no particularly interesting hosts among your party. And I had no way of knowing that you all intended to stick me down here where no one would find me. I felt sure that once you trekked out of the jungle, you would take me to a worthy host. But you, you I think I misjudged.”
Sophie ignored the look of interest the demon gave her and asked faintly, “Host?”
“Yes, yes,” it said impatiently. “I must bind to my master in order to wield the full extent of my powers. Nasty technicality, that. It was never a problem, you see, until the Empire fell and the Eye was lost.”
“What Empire?” asked Mick.
“The Mayan Empire, of course,” it said, as if this should be perfectly obvious.
“But we found the Eye in Peru,” said Sophie.
“Why do you think I was lost in the first place? The holy lord Xipe Totec really should have thought it through a bit more before he had me wipe it out. And I did warn him that humans tend not to survive inter-dimensional travel well. Did he listen? Of course not. So I sent him through, and he died, and I wound up in the middle of nowhere for nine hundred incredibly boring years.”
“Wait a minute,” said Mick, his voice far closer to human now, though none of the tension had left his back. “You’re sayin’ that you were responsible for the fall of the Mayan Empire?”
It smiled, and Sophie saw death, destruction.
Oh gods.
She had known the Eye was powerful. The Council wouldn’t have gone to all the trouble to hide it in the catacombs if it weren’t. But this… Her mind boggled at the ramifications. Had they known what the Eye was capable of? Did the kidnapper truly know what the Eye could do? And if he did, what exactly did he plan to use it for?
“You said before you needed a host,” said Mick. “Like a parasite?”
Its face shifted into lines of distaste, but it inclined its head in acknowledgement.
“All who use the Eye become bound to it, as I am.”
Sophie remembered their orders on the retrieval mission. Don’t touch the Eye. Never touch the Eye.
The demon continued. “Their life force is as much a source of power as my magic. He who uses the Eye does not give it up without death.”
“By you or someone else?” asked Sophie.
“I cannot kill the host.”
Sophie felt the strain of the water in her head and swayed. Powerful or no, this demon still wasn’t the one keeping them dry. Curling her hands, she dug her nails into her palms, using the pain to focus.
“What about now?” she demanded. “When you aren’t connected to a host. Do you have limitations or can you use your powers at your discretion?”
It gave her a look that clearly questioned her intelligence. “If I had full use of my powers, do you think I would still be down here in this pit? I cannot control the minds of the living unless bound.”
“So the zombies…” started Sophie.
“A poor attempt at entertainment.” It waved its hand dismissively. “I sincerely hope you have a far more interesting option because I’m getting fairly desperate. So one of you pick me up and get me out of here, and I will make all your problems go away.” It smiled and gestured at the Eye like a game show host showing off a prize.
“That’s not why we’re here,” said Sophie, flustered. This had gone so far beyond a mere retrieval.