Prologue: Demon Lost

"Jayd, we have to find Kifirin's tears."

 

"Glindarok, my love, what are you talking about?" Jaydevik Rath, King of the High Demons, looked up from a pile of reports sitting on his desk.  Glinda stood before him, beautiful as always, the river of white-blonde hair she'd inherited from her grandmother cascading about her shoulders. Carefully, Jayd covered the top report with a hand.

 

"Jayd, don't bother trying to hide it," Glinda's blue eyes flashed a warning. "How many did we lose to Baetrah this time?"

 

"Sixty-three, most from Greth," Jayd sighed. "I should know better than to hide anything from you."

 

"The High Demons are dying," Glinda muttered regretfully and dropped onto a chair beside Jayd's desk. "I hoped Jhase and Jheri might conceive as soon as they were mated, but that wasn't the case. The High Demon houses are losing hope, Jaydevik. They see no new females coming to them and that spells doom for all of Kifirin. That's why we must find the jewels my father called Kifirin's tears. My father always said that Kifirin hid them in the palace somewhere, and that we'd find them when our salvation was at hand. I felt sure we'd find them after Lissa fought off the Ra'Ak, but they never turned up. What if it's just a myth, Jayd? What if there's nothing to save us, now? Le-Ath Veronis is the balance for all the worlds instead of Kifirin. What if there's nothing that can bring us back?" Glinda wiped away tears as she stared at her husband.

 

"Come here, my love," Jayd pulled Glinda into his lap. "Kifirin made a promise to me when the balance was moved from the High Demons to the vampires. He told me he would do whatever was necessary to keep our race alive. We have to trust him, I think."

 

"I hope he does something soon, then," Glinda buried her head against Jayd's shoulder. "We've lost so many already."