“A few minutes,” I tell him.
He scowls. “I thought I’d been out for hours. That’s the trouble with this damn universe — you can’t get any decent sleep.”
Beranabus stands and stretches. He looks around with his small, blue-grey eyes and yawns. This is about the only time you can see his mouth properly. Mostly it’s hidden behind a thick, bushy beard. All our hair was burnt away when we traveled through time, but it’s grown back. I think he looked better without the beard, but he likes it. I grew my red hair the same way as before too. I guess you always go with what you’re used to.
“I suppose we’d better —,” Beranabus begins.
“Quiet!” Kernel hisses, cocking his head. This is a new tic of his. Several times recently he’s shushed us. He says he can hear muted whispers, hints of sounds that seem to come from the patches of light.
A few minutes pass. Kernel listens intently while Beranabus and I keep our peace. Finally he relaxes and shakes his head.
“Could you make out anything?” Beranabus asks.
“No,” Kernel sighs. “I’m not even sure it’s speech. Maybe it’s just white noise.”
“Or maybe you’re going crazy,” I throw in.
“Maybe,” Kernel agrees.
“I was joking,” I tell him.
“I wasn’t,” he replies.
“Well, whatever it is, it can wait,” Beranabus says. “We’ve had enough rest. Open another window and we’ll go find a few more demons.”
Kernel sighs, then concentrates. Roll on the next round of inquisitions and torture.
TO THE RESCUE
WE’RE chasing a flock of terrified sheep demons. Each one is covered with hundreds of small, woolly heads. No eyes or ears, just big mouths full of sharp demon teeth. All the better to eat you with, my dear.
Beranabus thinks the sheep might know something about the Shadow. Stronger demons prey on these weak creatures. He’s hoping they might have heard something useful if any of the Shadow’s army struck their flock recently. It’s a long shot, but Beranabus has devoted his life to long shots.
As we close in on the frantic demons, Kernel stops and stares at a spot close by.
“Come on!” Beranabus shouts. “Don’t stop now. We —”
“A window’s opening,” Kernel says, and Beranabus instantly loses interest in everything else.
“Start opening one of your own,” the magician barks, moving ahead of Kernel to protect him from whatever might come through. I step up beside the ancient magician, heart pounding hard for the first time in ages.
“Wait,” Kernel says as Beranabus drains magic from the air. “It’s not a demon.” He studies the invisible lights, then smiles. “We have company.”
A few seconds later, a window of dull orange light forms and the Disciple known as Shark emerges, quickly followed by Dervish’s old friend, Meera Flame.
“Shark!” Kernel shouts happily.
“Meera!” I yell, even happier than Kernel.
Beranabus glares suspiciously at the pair.
Meera wraps her arms around me and I whirl her off her feet. We’re both laughing. She kisses my cheeks. “You’ve grown,” she hoots. “You must be eight feet tall by now!”
“Not quite,” I chuckle, setting her down and beaming. Meera used to stay with us a lot and helped me look after Dervish when he was incapacitated a few years back. I had a big crush on Meera when I was younger. Hell, looking at her in her tight leather pants and jacket, I realize I still do. She’s a bit on the old side but doesn’t show it. If only she had a thing for younger guys!
Kernel and Shark are shaking hands, both talking at the same time. I’ve never seen Kernel this animated. Shark’s wearing army fatigues, looking much the same as ever.
“Hi, Shark,” I greet the ex-soldier.