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Chapter 1 A Dying Wish
Seth knew he should not be here His grandparents would be furious if they found out The dis feast of spoiled meat and fruit Almost steamy with humidity, the wet air forced him not only to smell but also to taste the putrid sweetness Every inhalation made him want to retch
Graulas lay on his side, chest swelling and shrinking with labored, hitching breaths His infected face rested against the rocky floor, inflah the derunted as Seth drew near Groaning and coughing, the bulky demon peeled his face away froround The deed to prop himself up on one elbow One eye opened a fraction The other was fused shut by congealed goo
"Seth," Graulas rasped, his for voice weak and tired
"I caent" The heavy head nodded slightly "Iaed
The ancient de since Seth had first met hihed, a cloud of dust rising froain, his voice littlemy final dayshave arrived"
Seth was unsure what to say Graulas had never tried to hide his nefarious past Most good people would be relieved to hear of his de intrigued by Seth’s unusual exploits and successes, Graulas had helped hiue, and had further assisted hi to use his newfound abilities as a shadow charmer Whatever crimes Graulas may have committed in the past, the moribund demon had always treated Seth well
"I’m sorry," Seth said, mildly surprised to find he really meant it
The deainst the ground His eye closed "The pain," he moaned softly "Exquisite pain My kinddiesso very slowly I thoughtI had saony But now, it burrows twists gnaws expands Deep inside Relentless Consu Before I can uish"
"Can I help?" Seth asked, doubting whether anything from the medicine cabinet would do the trick
The demon snorted "Not likely," he panted "I understandyou will leave tomorrow"
"How did you know that?" His mission the next day was supposedly a secret
"Confideno plansto Newel and Doren"
Seth had not provided the satyrs with details He had just told the Fablehaven for a time He had been at the preserve for more than three months, ever since he and the others had returned from Wyrmroost He had enjoyed several adventures with Newel and Doren in the interiood-bye Grandpa would only let them discuss the , so Seth had shared no specifics, but he probably should not have said anything at all to the satyrs "I didn’t give them details," he told Graulas
"Nobut I heard them mention your departureas they hI can’t see into your houseI can deduceyou seek another artifact Only sucha missionwould prompt Stan to riskyour safety"
"I can’t really talk about it," Seth apologized
Graulas coughed wetly "The details are uniuessedothers h I cannot seebeyond the preserveI can senseto spy Be on your guard"
"I’ll be careful," Seth promised "Is that why you called me here? To warn me?"
One eye cracked open and a faint s soaltruistic I a a favor"
"What?"
"I mayexpirebefore you return Which would render my wishesirrelevant After all this timemy days are truly numbered Sethnot onlymy physical paintroubles me I am afraid to die"
"Me too"
Graulas grimaced "You do not understand Compared to meyou have little to fear"
Seth scrunched his brow "You mean because you were bad?"
"If I couldevaporateinto nothingI would welcome death But this is not the case There are other spheres awaiting us, Seth The place prepared for my kinde exit this lifeis not pleasant Which is partly why de as we can After how I livedfor thousands of yearsI will have to pay a steep price"
"But you’re not the person you were," Seth said "You’ve helped "
Graulas huffed and coughed differently than he had before It almost sounded like a bitter chuckle "I meddled with your dilemmasfrom my deathbedto amuse
myself Such trivialities will do little to offset centuries of deliberate evil I have not changed, Seth I am merely powerless I have no drive left As , I fear that the afterlifewill hold far greater agonies"
"So what can I do?" Seth wondered
"One thing only," Graulas growled through clenched lips His eye squinted shut and his fists tightened Seth heard teeth grinding The deed bursts "OneCreamy tears oozed from his eyes