was bleak at best.
The dark elf felt no joy. 'Give me the Eye of Deception, please, and let us begin at once. The swarm of enemy skirmishers masking the front surely presages some attack soon. There is no time to waste.'
The demon lord cut his laughter short and composed himself with a visible effort. The strain of the long war was evidently beginning to tell on Vuron. 'You are abrupt, drow,' he almost snarled, 'but correct. Here,' Vuron said, drawing forth a leather case from inside his cloak Opening the box, the albino demon drew out a silken bag embroidered with sigils of fiery color. The thread was of orichaicum, and the shapes moved as if they were alive. 'The Eye of Deception is within. Bring it forth and mask my channeling of dweomer when I raise my left hand, not before.'
Far removed, Iuz and his cohorts wondered why Demogorgon and his allies from Hades and the other netherspheres were so dilatory in pressing their advantage. Graz'zt fought a war on two fronts. With Iuz was his mother, Iggwilv, greatest of witches, and an array of mighty demons, including Zuggtmoy, the cambion's nominal consort and the queen of all fungoid demons. The roster of powerful allies continued: Orcus, Szhublox, Eblls, Azazael, Bulumuz, Lugush, Marduk, Socoth-benothas, Var-Az-Hloo, Abraxas, and a score of lesser demon nobles too. With such a force confronting the would-be ruler of all the Abyss on one front, Graz'zt had shifted the vast majority of his forces to oppose them. That should have allowed the horde of Demogorgon to advance swiftly to threaten the great ebon demonking on the other front. Iggwilv had counseled that strategy, and Iuz had agreed.
As the one front crumbled, Graz'zt would have to shift soldiers there to bolster it. Demogorgon and Mandrillagon would then demand more reinforcements from Infestix. Devils, cacodaemons, dreggals, daemons, maelvis, and dumalduns in their tens of thousands would be poured into the attack by the master of the pits. Infestix would not allow his puppet demons to be checked, his plan to be thwarted.
As the forces led by the ape-headed Demogorgon and Mandrillagon swelled, Graz'zt would be forced to deploy still more of his own remaining strength to oppose them. Because the ebon demonking's territory was contracting, he would have fewer and fewer reserves. Quickly enough the pressure would be sufficient to cause a weakening of the line which opposed Iuz's own faction. Then, with a massive onslaught, all of the cambion's troops would attack. Graz'zt would be struck along the entire front, his defenses shattered at a blow, and his last stronghold would fall into Iuz's hands as if it were a ripe plum. But in order for that to occur, the reluctant Demogorgon had to begin pressure on the other side.
Could Infestix have realized the plan? Possible, but not likely. Even if the daemon had, his dedication to the cause of freeing Tharizdun demanded a continuing war upon Graz'zt, for the black lord of demons possessed one of the Theorparts necessary for Tharizdun's release, just as Iuz did. Naturally, Infestix thought to gam the one possessed by Graz'zt first, then to use two of the portions of the relic to defeat Iuz and his growing force of demons.
It would not occur that way. Never. Iuz would wrest the artifact turn the tables, and drive the invading enemy from the Abyss. Tharizdun would never be loosed, and Iuz would rule many places, including the Abyss and Oerth, too. Five days of inactivity. . What was the stupid fool Demogorgon doing? Then the scryers saw the other force opposing Graz'zt begin to move and brought the good news to the cambion.
'It is working?'
'Of course it is,' Vuron responded without breaking his concentration on the time distortion he was building. Leda, meanwhile, was using the Eye of Deception — once the most potent artifact in the Abyss, now but a poor fourth to the three parts of the relic that could loose the ultimate entity of Evil, Tharizdun. With the Eye, the dark elf made Vuron's act appear to be hastening time on this battle plane. Leda did this openly, but not obviously. The opposing demon nobles would sense something amiss immediately, then move to discover and counter whatever their foe was doing. One minute of time to Vuron and her and all the others confronting each other was an hour elsewhere.
'I feel Demogorgon,' the albino demon lord hissed. 'Rash … he is as rash as we had hopedl Now he perceives we are tinkering with time. He finds it fast. He thinks we will use the distortion to some advantage, so he uses his Theorpart to slow it again, to balance our effort, nullify it.'
'And. .?' Leda whispered, unsure of the success.
'In the second it took you to ask girl.' the pale demon lord replied, 'an hour passed in the other layers of the Abyss. The fool has multiplied our work.
One Theorpart slows time by a factor of sixty, so that a second passes as a minute, a minute an hour. Two multiply that again, and one second is now one hour!'
'What next?'
'Stay as you are, Leda,' Vuron commanded. 'The ape-heads must not know they have been duped yet. I will see to the attacks now, have Nergel make his sweep, personally command the left thrust. Mandrillagon will recoil, then Demogorgon will advance with his entire force. You will cease the delusion immediately upon arrival of the Jahklout force — it is probable that by then I'll have returned here, but…'
'You will be back to manage the main assault when Demogorgon comes?' Leda's voice held no fear as she asked that, but it was evident that in the area of command she felt inferior to Vuron.
'Palvlag is quite capable of managing the left flank I go there only to beguile the enemy into believing that the move is a major threat, so that Mandrillagon will react as we wish, and Demogorgon too. I will be back never fear, but now I must hurry, for we have spent too much time already, and the foe certainly will strike us soon.'
She understood the latter. She could feel the approach of Mandrillagon, even though the simian demon lord was doing his utmost to disguise his movement and intent 'Death to the foe,' Leda said perfunctorily as she renewed her concentration on the Eye. Vuron didn't hear, for the thin albino general of the demon army was already on his way to the left flank of the long, triple-tiered line.
He found Palvlag at the very end of the formation. The demon was the last of the elder ones, now that Pazuzeus and Shabriri were no more. He who had been the least of them alone survived now. Vuron couldn't help but wonder what it would be like to be the last of his own sort. . He dismissed the thought quickly.
Palvlag was busily marshalling the new arrivals, evidently planning to use the bar-lgura unit as a flank guard, and the mixed formation as a reserve against a breakthrough of his portion of the front. Vuron liked the initiative shown by the protodemon. It was the sort of care and forethought that had probably been instrumental in Palvlag's ability to survive through the millennia. That, coupled with his hatred of Infestix and all those allied to the daemon ruler in any fashion, made Palvlag the most reliable of the greater demons serving Graz'zt — and Vuron himself, the albino added mentally.
Although he wasn't sure, Vuron thought that Shabriri had been some blood relation to Palvlag; not a brother, but a cousin or uncle, perhaps. The two of them had been as friendly and close as ones of demonkind ever became. When Shabriri had been slam because of Gravestone's bumbling, and because the latter had been Infestix's tool, the last of the protodemons had sworn a terrible oath, witnessed by Vuron at Palvlag's request. Palvlag would never rest until the master of the pits was no more, and he cared not if his own existence was snuffed out in the process.
'My Lord General?' Palvlag said with curt politeness when he finally noticed Vuron nearby, watching.
'Death to the enemy. Lord Captain,' the albino demon responded formally. 'Order the mixed regiment to the left flank of the bar-lgura immediately. Then you will command it as both units wheel out and sweep across the front parallel to our main line.'
'There are naught but dumaldun trash there to fight. . Even as he said that Palvlag's eyes clouded, going from burning orange to dull gold. Then all four suddenly lit up more fiercely than before. 'Yes, General Vuron, I obey. I can sense Mandrillagon's approach. He is near! Who is to have overall command here, though?'
It was a logical question. 'I will accompany you, Palvlag. The enemy must think this is more than two regiments attacking, that I plan a major offensive movement. At any time, however, I may have to leave the area. The moment that happens, you will become commander again. Is that clear?'
'Most clear. General. Mandrillagon will probably panic at our approach. He will withdraw, and we will inflict severe casualties on whatever troops are there. Then the enemy will respond in some fashion, and your presence will be needed elsewhere.'
Vuron gave the ancient protodemon a cold smile. 'You are ever astute. Captain Palvlag. I will be sure to
