“Our group tried to contact the demons during the Crusades,” Edith said. “It was thought that if we learned enough about them, we could bring them under our control.”
“Why would you think you can do that?” Warren asked.
“Because we are men.” Pride echoed in Jonas’s voice. “It’s our destiny to become masters of everything. We conquered the land, from the coastal towns to the great deserts. We conquered the sea and even most of what lies beneath it. No predator exists in the wild that we need to fear. We’ve put a man on the moon.” Jonas paused. “The demons are just another facet of the world we have open to us. It will be a matter of time, but we’ll conquer them as well.”
“Why not destroy them?”
“Because we can learn so much from them,” Edith said. “They’re a new resource we haven’t before encountered. They have knowledge—and powers—that we’ve only dreamed of. They can help us reach a higher Awakening.”
The way she said Awakening told Warren the word was in capital letters.
“But they’re evil,” Warren said.
“Is a kitten evil?” Jonas asked.
Warren didn’t answer, knowing there was no way he could reply that wouldn’t lend itself to Jonas’s argument.
“A child would think a kitten was a loving pet,” Jonas said. “Until that kitten took down a beautiful songbird in the backyard. Despite its domesticity, that kitten will never stray from its true nature. In its heart, it’s still a predator, a killing machine. Demons have their own mandates they must follow.”
“The demons are worse than kittens,” Warren said.
“True, but we believe they can be brought into line. Even if they can’t, we can cage them and use them to learn about the magic that has entered our world.” Jonas smiled. “That’s all the Cabalists have ever wanted: the same power the demons wield.”
“The Templar get in the way of our ability to do that,” Edith said. “We don’t like dealing with them when we can help it.”
“Although there were some Cabalists who aided the Templar in their attack on St. Paul’s Cathedral,” Jonas added. “It was important that the demons be slowed somewhat so we can observe them for a period of time. But come with me.”
“Stories about the demons have been with us since the Crusades,” Jonas said. “Tracking down all the books over the centuries since then has been demanding. The fact that there were so many imitators has made that task even more difficult.”
Drawn by the printed matter, Warren gazed at the spines of the books. “H. P. Lovecraft.”
“He was on the right trail,” Jonas said. “He and Robert E. Howard had conferred on the nature of the demons. There were others, including Clark Ashton Smith and Aleister Crowley. All of these were men who chased the Darkness, wanting to embrace it and learn its secrets.”
“But these are just stories,” Warren said as he surveyed the books. He’d read all of the authors while he was growing up. Many of the same books were on the shelves in his loft.
“They are,” Jonas said, “but their inspiration is based in stories that were handed down from the Crusades. Belief in devils and demons. Belief in supernatural powers. Popular literature is rife with it. It’s never gone away.”
Searching the shelves, Warren found books he could remember seeing his mother read.
“The legends of the demons never totally left our world,” Jonas said. “Not in legend, and not in flesh. I personally believe they’ve been here, orphaned somehow from their own world, since mankind has gathered in caves and talked about what lies in the darkness beyond the light of the campfire.”
“They originated here?” Warren asked.
Jonas shook his head. “They’re from somewhere else. Some other world. Or some other plane of existence.”
“Then how did they get here?”
“I think mankind has always been able to sense them. The fabric between the worlds was probably very thin to begin with.”
“Till people here learned to fear them,” Edith said.
“They’re predators,” Warren said. “Fear would be natural.”
“Would it?” Jonas raised his eyebrows. “The dog was not always man’s best friend. It was domesticated. But I’m sure that the beginning of that process wasn’t certain.”
“Demons are as smart as humans.”
“Which means that we have more to learn from them. Don’t you see?”
Warren thought about it, and knew that he did.
“We believe that the demons brought magic into the world,” Edith said. “As mankind’s belief in demons was muted, so was its ability to tap into the arcane energies the demons set loose in the world.”
“But now they’re back,” Jonas said. “And our potential has swelled anew.” He looked at Warren. “Of course, there have always been those few that have had more natural ability than most. You were one of those.”
“It wasn’t because I believed in demons,” Warren said. “Until I saw one a few days ago, I hadn’t believed in them.”
“Your mother did. Perhaps that was enough.”
“My mother,” Warren said, distancing himself from the pain and confusion from all those years ago, “wanted to believe in magic. She wanted to believe in something that would enable her to have power over her own life.”
“Some just have a natural affinity for magic,” Jonas said. “We believe you’re one of those adepts. When Edith told me how you’d managed to turn the demon away a few days ago, I knew I had to meet you. I’m glad you came.”
Warren studied the man’s smile. Jonas was happy for himself, for the opportunity he saw before him. Warren knew he could have seen that without whatever ability he had that allowed him to know the truth when people spoke to him.
“What do you want me to do?” Warren asked.
Seated in the circle in the large room, Warren watched the others in the group. Many of them welcomed him to their efforts, but some of them radiated jealousy and suspicion.
They knew who he was. At least that Jonas and Edith suspected he might be a progeny, even if they didn’t know his
